Defense Secretary Jim Mattis’ controversial new “deploy or out” policy, which requires troops to become deployable within 12 months or face separation, comes with a built-in exemption for the combat wounded.
But in designated “wounded warrior” units maintained by the services, those recovering from combat-related illness and injury form an increasingly small percentage of the total population.
And those whose conditions are not directly related to combat have no automatic protection from the deploy-or-out mandate, Pentagon officials say.
