A Message from the Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs
Colleagues,
I am honored to join you as the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs and for the time being as the Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs. Throughout my career, I have witnessed firsthand the dedication, expertise, and impact of the Military Health System (MHS), and I am committed to supporting and advancing our shared mission.
Having served 25 years as a Navy physician, I have a deep appreciation for the complexity of the military medical mission and the critical role each of you plays in ensuring the health and readiness of our service members, families, and retirees. My experience across combat, humanitarian, and disaster relief missions has reinforced the importance of a strong, integrated healthcare system – one that balances operational readiness with the highest quality of care.
My relationship to the MHS vastly transcends simply my professional association, however—I have a deep personal affection for the institution. Both of my children were born in an MTF, and the dedicated healthcare professionals of the Army, Navy, and Air Force have expertly and compassionately cared for my family for nearly 35 years.
Beyond uniformed service, my time as Chief Medical Officer of the Central Intelligence Agency and as a Congressional Fellow on the Health Subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce committee allowed me to remain deeply engaged in national security, health policy, and oversight of key agencies like CMS, FDA, CDC, and NIH. These roles have only strengthened my belief that the success of the MHS relies on collaboration, accountability, and a steadfast focus on our people.
In an ever changing and uncertain national security environment, we are again reminded that we bear the privilege and responsibility to honor the compact made between those who pledge to go into harm’s way: that should they become ill or injured, they will receive prompt and effective medical care whether on land, sea, air, or space.
We have a unique opportunity to confront the challenges that lay ahead and to take bold initiative. Our greatest strength, our most potent defense against our adversaries, is you. Your intellect, your ingenuity, your character, and your dedication will carry the day just as it has for nearly two-and-a-half centuries.
I look forward to all we will accomplish together as we continue to advance the health and readiness of our force. We are building on a strong foundation and will ensure that the MHS remains a model of excellence in military and civilian health care.
It’s an honor to serve with you. Your continued service and frequent sacrifices are truly inspirational.
Respectfully,
Stephen Ferrara, M.D.
Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs
Secretary Hegseth’s Message to the Force
It is the privilege of a lifetime to lead the warriors of the Department of Defense, under the leadership of our Commander in Chief Donald J. Trump. We will put America First, and we will never back down.
The President gave us a clear mission: achieve Peace through Strength. We will do this in three ways — by restoring the warrior ethos, rebuilding our military, and reestablishing deterrence.
o We will revive the warrior ethos and restore trust in our military. We are American warriors. We will defend our country. Our standards will be high, uncompromising, and clear. The strength of our military is our unity and our shared purpose.
o We will rebuild our military by matching threats to capabilities. This means reviving our defense industrial base, reforming our acquisition process, passing a financial audit, and rapidly fielding emerging technologies. We will remain the strongest and most lethal force in the world.
o We will reestablish deterrence by defending our homeland — on the ground and in the sky. We will work with allies and partners to deter aggression in the Indo-Pacific by Communist China, as well as supporting the President’s priority to end wars responsibly and reorient to key threats. We will stand by our allies — and our enemies are on notice.
All of this will be done with a focus on lethality, meritocracy, accountability, standards, and readiness.
I have committed my life to warfighters and their families. Just as my fellow soldiers had my back on the battlefield, know that I will always have your back. We serve together at a dangerous time. Our enemies will neither rest nor relent. And neither will we. We will stand shoulder to shoulder to meet the urgency of this moment.
Like each of you, I love my country and swore an oath to defend the Constitution. We will do that each and every day, as one team. Together we will accomplish the President’s mission to deter war, and if necessary, defeat and destroy our enemies. Godspeed!
Sailor-to-Sailor December Newsletter
Recapping US Navy career news and opportunities from December with the Sailor-to-Sailor newsletter:
https://www.dvidshub.net/publication/issues/72610
Read all about:
-Exceptional Family Member Program updates
-Integrated Primary Prevention Workforce implementation
-And more!
Navy leaders – empower your Sailors: Share this post, send to a shipmate, or print the newsletter and post it on your shop’s bulletin board.
Joel Schofer's Career Planning Blog 