Dr. Stephen Ferrara, the Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Heath Affairs, has issued the following statement:

“This morning, Army Lieutenant General, Dr. Telita Crosland, the fourth Director of the Defense Health Agency, is beginning her retirement. I want to thank LTG Crosland for her dedication to the nation, to the Military Health System, and to Army Medicine for the past 32 years.

I have designated Dr. David Smith, the Acting Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, as the Acting Director of the DHA while the Department conducts the normal nomination process. Dr. Smith is a steady hand with decades of experience in the Military Health System in and out of uniform. I ask everyone to support Dr. Smith and the entire DHA team as we stabilize and strengthen our system serving the most lethal fighting force on the planet. Dr. Smith’s biography is available on Health.mil.

I am confident the DHA will continue to improve health care in support of our beneficiaries and rise to meet complex security challenges worldwide. Thank you for all you do for the Department of Defense and our great nation.”