The Defense Health Agency has established a market-based structure to manage the hospitals and clinics. Each market will:
- Provide shared administrative services to the hospitals and clinics in their region.
- Be responsible for generating medical readiness of active duty members and families in their regions
- Ensure the readiness of their medical personnel.
To accomplish this, the markets will flex resources across their regions to ensure we meet patient demand and the readiness needs of the medical troops.
The DHA Market Construct is derived from the FY 2017 NDAA, Section 702 guidance to consolidate management of military hospitals and clinics and to provide:
- Optimized patient care
- Increased maintenance of readiness-related skillsets
- Increased access to care
- Increased flexibility in funding
Market Breakdown
In 20 Direct Reporting Markets where we have large concentrations of facilities and patients, markets are centered on large medical centers, establishing centers of excellence for specialty care that meet the needs of beneficiaries across their market regions. Nearly two-thirds of our current patient encounters happen in these 20 regions.
Another 17 Small Markets, such as Central Oklahoma and Central Kentucky, are centered on inpatient community hospitals, focused on providing ambulatory and some specialty and inpatient care across their regions. These small markets, as well as many stand-alone hospitals and clinics located outside a market region, report to the Small-Market and Stand-Alone Military Treatment Facility Organization (SSO) that provides administration and management support.
When DHA assumes responsibility for overseas hospitals and clinics, two regional offices called Defense Health Agency Regions will provide similar support, one for Europe and one for the Pacific.
