Questions raised about Pentagon's delay in reporting Lloyd Austin's hospitalization

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has been hospitalized since Monday due to complications from an elective medical procedure.

The public only learned about the hospitalization Friday evening — a four-day delay that is raising the hackles of some in Washington, and which has gone unexplained by the Pentagon.

Austin, 70, is a retired Army four-star general who was one of President Joe Biden's first cabinet picks. He has been recovering at the Walter Reed national Military Medical Center in Maryland since Monday night, according to Pentagon press secretary Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, who said he would resume his full duties Friday.

The Pentagon did not say what procedure Austin underwent, or what his complications were. However, NBC News reported that he had spent four days in the intensive care unit, citing two senior administration officials.

The Pentagon Press Association sent a letter to Pentagon officials noting the delay is out of step with disclosure standards for top officials, and that Austin "no claim to privacy" about his hospitalization.

"The public has a right to know when U.S. Cabinet members are hospitalized, under anesthesia or when duties are delegated as the result of any medical procedure," the group wrote.

"At a time when there are growing threats to U.S. military service members in the Middle East and the U.S. is playing key national security roles in the wars in Israel and Ukraine, it is particularly critical for the American public to be informed about the health status and decision-making ability of its top defense leader."

The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for more information about Austin's hospitalization status, what procedure he underwent and its ensuing complication, or why there was a delay in reporting his condition.

Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks took up Austin's duties while he was hospitalized this week, NBC News reported, but she was on pre-scheduled leave and picked up the duties from Puerto Rico.

Oren Liebermann, Pentagon Correspondent for CNN, also called the delay "unacceptable."

"This is an administration that talked a big game about transparency, and it failed this test," he wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

The hospitalization comes amid multiple global conflicts with implications for regional peace and American safety. Over the last week, the United States conducted a rare strike against an Iranian-backed militia in Baghdad in response to a drone attack Monday; issued a final warning to Houthi rebels attacking ships in the Red Sea, and at least half a dozen bases housing American have been attacked.

Austin has also been a leading participant in an effort to supply weapons and training to Ukraine, which is in an ongoing war with Russia, and in communicating with Israel amid the latest Israel-Hamas war.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Lengthy delay in Lloyd Austin hospitalization reporting raises concerns