没有人会因为对国防部长劳埃德·奥斯汀的住院保密而受到谴责-包括部长本人或他的幕僚长-此前五角大楼对此事的内部审查得出结论，没有迹象表明“恶意或试图混淆”局势。

一;一个未分类摘要五角大楼的调查结果表示，对医疗隐私和快速变化的形势的担忧是主要原因。但这份总结没有回答一些关键问题，比如他的工作人员何时意识到他的病情，以及国防部长本人是否被建议向白宫发出警报，但他没有选择这样做。

官员们表示，五角大楼已向国会提供了额外的机密细节。

奥斯汀在给员工的备忘录中写道:“作为一个学习型组织，我们将继续学习和调整。

这些调查结果并没有让国会山的批评者感到满意，他们表示，当部长无法履行职责时，奥斯汀和他的高级顾问有责任通知国会、白宫和公众。

奥斯汀预计将于周四在众议院军事委员会作证。

不出所料，由他自己的下属对Sec奥斯汀行动的审查众议院军事委员会主席、阿拉巴马州共和党众议员迈克·罗杰斯(Mike Rogers)在审查报告发布后发推文称:“经他批准，不追究任何人的责任。”这就是为什么我们正在进行自己的调查。我们将在周四奥斯汀的听证会上寻求答案。"

国防部长于12月22日接受了前列腺癌微创手术治疗，导致尿路感染和严重的肠道并发症。他于1月1日再次住院，但白宫直到1月4日才得知这两起事件。他于1月5日获释。

根据提供给议员的一份详细说明，奥斯汀的副手在多个方面被授予了国防部的权力，但她没有被告知为何由她负责。

五角大楼新闻秘书帕特·赖德少将周一告诉记者，在这两次住院期间，权力从未出现任何差距，谁负责每一点都很清楚。

“这是一种前所未有的情况，工作人员正在使用他们以前使用的流程和程序，并再次尽最大努力确保...赖德在周一的一次简报会上说:“在指挥和控制方面没有差距。

当被问及没有人会被追究责任时，赖德说奥斯汀已经承担责任。奥斯汀此前曾表示，他曾致电总统道歉，但从未考虑过辞职。

奥斯汀“认识到，我们本应该更好地通知那些本应该得到通知的人。我要说的是，国务卿为支持他的团队感到非常自豪。

国会议员和五角大楼监察长仍在调查推迟通知拜登总统和政府高级官员住院一事，预计五角大楼将在今年晚些时候发布一份单独报告。拜登总统公开指责奥斯汀他上个月告诉记者，他仍然对奥斯汀有信心，但指出这是判断失误。

奥斯汀本月早些时候告诉记者，他的癌症诊断是一记“重击”，他的第一反应是保密。他说，这是一个错误。

“我们没有正确处理这件事。奥斯汀说:“我没有处理好这件事。

Pentagon finds no one to blame for keeping Secretary Austin's hospital stays secret

No one will be reprimanded for keeping Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's hospital stays a secret -- including the secretary himself or his chief of staff -- after an internal Pentagon review of the matter concluded there was no indication of "ill intent or an attempt to obfuscate" the situation.

Anunclassified summaryof the Pentagon's findings says concerns about medical privacy and a rapidly changing situation were mostly to blame. But the summary didn't answer key questions about when individual members of his staff became aware of his condition and whether the defense secretary himself was advised to alert the White House but chose not to.

The Pentagon has provided additional classified details to Congress, officials said.

"As a learning organization, we will continue to learn and adjust," Austin wrote in a memo to his staff.

The findings didn't satisfy critics on Capitol Hill who say Austin and his top advisers had a duty to notify Congress, the White House, and the public when the secretary was unable to fulfill his duties.

Austin is expected to testify Thursday before the House Armed Services Committee.

"Unsurprisingly, the review of Sec Austin's actions, conducted by his own subordinates& subject to his approval, HELD NO ONE ACCOUNTABLE," tweeted Rep. Mike Rogers, the Alabama Republican chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, following release of the review. "This is why we are conducting our own investigation. We will seek answers at our hearing w/ Sec Austin on Thursday."

The defense secretary underwent a minimally invasive surgical procedure for prostate cancer Dec. 22, which led to a urinary tract infection and serious intestinal complications. He was hospitalized again on Jan. 1, but the White House didn't learn about either event until Jan. 4. He was released Jan. 5.

Austin's deputy was granted authority over the Defense Department at various points, but she wasn't told why she had been put in charge, according to a detailed account provided to lawmakers.

Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters on Monday that there was never any gap in authority, and that it was clear who was in charge at every point during those two hospital stays.

"This was an unprecedented situation and the staff was using the process and procedures that they have employed previously, and again to the best of their abilities, ensuring ... that there were no gaps in command and control," Ryder said at a briefing Monday.

When pressed on the point that no one was going to be held accountable, Ryder said Austin has already accepted responsibility. Austin has said previously that he called the president to apologize but never at any point considered resigning.

Austin "recognizes that we should have done a much better job notifying those who should have been notified. I will say that the Secretary is very proud of the team that he has supporting him," Ryder said.

The delay in informing President Biden and top administration officials of his hospitalization remains under investigation by lawmakers and the Pentagon's inspector general, which is expected to release a separate report later this year. President Bidenpublicly faulted Austinfor not informing him earlier, telling reporters last month he still had confidence in Austin, but noted it was a lapse in judgment.

Austin told reporters earlier this month that his cancer diagnosis was a "gut punch" and that his first instinct was to keep it private. That was a mistake, he said.

"We did not handle this right. I did not handle this right," Austin said.