 Thanks very much for your patience. On December 22, 2023, after consultation with his medical team, he was admitted to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center and underwent a minimally invasive surgical procedure called a prostatectomy to treat and cure prostate cancer. He was under general anesthesia during this procedure. Secretary Austin recovered unventfully from his surgery and returned home the next morning. His prostate cancer was detected early and his prognosis is excellent. On January 1, 2024, Secretary Austin was admitted to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center with complications from the December 22 procedure, including nausea with severe abdominal hip and leg pain. Initial evaluation revealed a urinary tract infection. On January 2, the decision was made to transfer him to the ICU for close monitoring and a higher level of care. Further evaluation revealed abdominal fluid collections impairing the function of his small intestines. This resulted in the backup of his intestinal contents which was treated by placing a tube through his nose to drain his stomach. The abdominal fluid collections were drained by non-surgical drain placement. He has progressed steadily throughout his stay. His infection is cleared. He continues to make progress and we anticipate a full recovery, although this can be a slow process. During the stay, Secretary Austin never lost consciousness and never underwent general anesthesia. The department recognizes the understandable concerns expressed by the public, Congress and the news media in terms of notification timelines and DOD transparency. I want to underscore again that Secretary Austin has taken responsibility for the issues with transparency and the department is taking immediate steps to improve our notification procedures. Yesterday, the Secretary's Chief of Staff directed the DOD's Director of Administration and Management to conduct a 30-day review of the department's notification process for assumption of functions and duties of the Secretary of Defense. While the review is underway and effective immediately, the Chief of Staff also directed several actions to ensure increased situational awareness about any transfer of authorities from the Secretary of Defense to include ensuring that the DOD General Counsel, the chairman and vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the combatant commanders, the service secretaries, the service chief of staff, the White House situation room and senior staff of the Secretary and Deputy Secretary of Defense are all notified and that the notification for transfer of authorities includes an explanation of the reason.