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Kadena hosts Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness

  • Published
  • By 1st Lieutenant Robert Dabbs, Senior Airman Cedrique Oldaker, Airman 1st Class Alexis Redin
  • 18th Wing Public Affairs

The Honorable Gilbert R Cisneros Jr., the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, and Ms. Seileen Mullen, the Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, visited Kadena Air Base, Japan, Feb. 1, 2023 as part of a U.S. Forces Japan tour.

During their visit, Cisneros and Mullen hosted a Kadena Town Hall to give audience members an opportunity to openly discuss healthcare and health services, DoDEA schools, mental healthcare and counseling access and additional quality-of-life topics.

The town hall was open to all Status of Forces Agreement members on island, and more than 20 attendees shared personal matters and presented issues to be solved on behalf of their community.

Questions primarily focused on healthcare and health services for civilians and their families who work on or for DoD entities in Okinawa. Participants were a mix of active duty, retiree, veteran and civilian members.

“We’re here to hear these comments so we can take this feedback and see what we can do to make it better going forward,” said Cisneros.

The town hall was an opportunity for participants to raise important concerns that warrant attention at the OSD level.

During the tour, Cisneros and Mullen visited the Kadena BX and commissary to discuss organization and fluctuations at the storefronts.

They also visited 18th Medical Group to assess the capabilities and struggles they undergo at, and to gain a more in depth understanding of its role at Kadena. 

An additional town hall was hosted at Camp Foster, Okinawa, Feb. 2, 2023, at the base theater. Those who were unable to attend were able to watch and interact via a Facebook Live event on the Kadena Air Base Facebook.