The Pentagon cost report omits overseas troop health care.

Evidence

The Overseas Cost Summary includes the pay and extra allowances for military personnel abroad, but I confirmed with the Pentagon that, strangely, it doesn’t include health care and other benefits paid to troops. The Defense Health Program and other military personnel benefits, excluding those that are war-related, cost 31.2 billion and 51.8 billion, respectively, in 2012 worldwide. With 14 percent of all U.S. military personnel overseas, not counting troops directly involved in U.S. wars, I conservatively estimate that the same percentage of costs occurs overseas. This adds up to a little over $11.6 billion. — David Vine, Base Nation_ How U.S. Military Bases…, 622

Categorization

• QUESTION: Why would Congress and the Pentagon exclude health care and Navy costs from a report meant to track overseas spending?
• XREF: connects to: The Pentagon omits overseas health care and benefits costs from its base accounting.; The official overseas military cost report omits Navy vessel costs. — David Vine, Base Nation_ How U.S. Military Bases…, 618; Pentagon overseas cost reports omit countries with major bases and understate others. — David Vine, Base Nation_ How U.S. Military Bases…, 608 (+11 more)
• yield-rescued: below the book’s yield-target cutoff, included anyway for connecting to: The Pentagon omits overseas health care and benefits costs from its base accounting.; The official overseas military cost report omits Navy vessel costs. — David Vine, Base Nation_ How U.S. Military Bases…, 618; Pentagon overseas cost reports omit countries with major bases and understate others. — David Vine, Base Nation_ How U.S. Military Bases…, 608 (+11 more)

Broader Connections

• The Pentagon omits overseas health care and benefits costs from its base accounting. #expands (0.97)
• The U.S. lacks universal health care while spending heavily on overseas bases. #complicates (0.75)
• The United States denies universal health care while spending heavily on overseas bases #complicates (0.75)