The Senate Armed Services Committee, chaired by U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., got a briefing on the Department of Defense’s (DOD) response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Officials updated committee members on what DOD is doing to protect the force and maintain readiness, how the DOD is supporting civil authorities, and what steps DOD is taking to mitigate the effects of the pandemic on the Defense Industrial Base.

“As the situation onboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt has shown, our military is facing numerous and unique challenges as they balance preventing further spread of COVID-19 among our troops with trying to maintain readiness for national security missions.” Said Inhofe. “Our military service leaders need to set clear, unit-level policies to prevent service members from getting and transmitting COVID-19, and to support unit leaders with the tools and resources needed to respond to and mitigate outbreaks as they occur.”