A timeline of Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s hospitalization and lack of White House notification

WASHINGTON (AP) — The revelation that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had prostate cancer surgery and was later hospitalized in intensive care due to complications from that operation without President Joe Biden, Cabinet members or even his deputy knowing has put an intense spotlight on what staff knew when and why they did not inform government or military leaders or the public.

On the night of Austin’s ambulance ride to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, his personal security detail was with him, and there are now questions about why that did not trigger an immediate call to an operations center to inform his key staff.

Despite persistent questions, details about what happened and Austin’s medical status only slowly dribbled out, day by day. Eight days after Austin was hospitalized for an infection stemming from the surgery a week earlier, the Defense Department finally released a detailed statement from his doctors outlining his cancer and subsequent complications.

Although doctors say he is recovering well, there are many unanswered questions about the lack of disclosure and what impact the diagnosis will have on his ability to do his job, which entails an aggressive travel and public schedule.

<bsp-custom-headline custom-headline=«div»> RELATED STORIES </bsp-custom-headline> <bsp-custom-headline custom-headline=«div»> Austin kept prostate cancer, surgery complications a secret from everyone, even Biden<use xlink:href="#play-icon" xmlns:xlink=«http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink»> </bsp-custom-headline> <bsp-custom-headline custom-headline=«div»> White House, Pentagon will review Defense Secretary Austin’s lack of disclosure on his hospital stay </bsp-custom-headline>

Here’s a look at the timeline:

Early