Army regional health commands reorganize

SEMBACH KASERNE, Germany — Europe Regional Medical Command, Europe Regional Dental Command and Public Health Command Region-Europe were combined into a single regional health command as part of a U.S. Army Medical Command organizational restructure during a ceremony July 10 at the Sembach soccer field.

The combined command was named Regional Health Command-Europe and is part of the MEDCOM initiative to reorganize five Army Regional Medical Commands into four multidisciplinary Regional Health Commands. The reorganization aims to enhance quality, access to care and safety for Soldiers, family members, retirees and Army civilians.

The new design elevates the subordinate commands for dental, public health and Warrior Care and Transition to principal staff elements within MEDCOM headquarters and creates a single point of accountability for health readiness within each region.

MEDCOM’s priorities remain unchanged to include: combat casualty care, readiness and health of the force, a ready and deployable medical force and the health of families and retirees.

Brig. Gen. Norvell V. Coots, ERMC commander, took command of RHC-E while continuing in his role as the Command Surgeon for U.S. Army Europe.

“Throughout this reorganization we will continue to provide responsive, reliable, quality health services influencing health and wellness, improving readiness and saving the lives of those we are privileged to serve,” Coots said. “Our goal is for this transition to be completely seamless to our patients.”

These changes posture Army Medicine to best support the Army’s current and future operations and global engagements,” Coots continued. “We are committed to our vision of making RHC-E the premier integrated health command … leading the transformation of military medicine in Europe, saving lives and striving to exceed all expectations.”