A Case Study on the Potential Benefits of Reserve Component Duty Status Reform: The U.S. Department of Defense's COVID-19 Response : RAND Corporation , August 12 , 2025
A Case Study on the Potential Benefits of Reserve Component Duty Status Reform: The U.S. Department of Defense's COVID-19 Response : RAND Corporation , August 12 , 2025
From the report: "National Guard and Reserve members played an important role in responding to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in the United States. They carried out a wide range of activities, including providing medical care, logistics and administration of care facilities, testing, vaccine administration, and mortuary affairs. The mobilization of these typically part-time National Guard and Reserve members was not without its challenges, including disruptions in pay and benefits as members shifted on and off different types of duty and funding sources.
Some of these challenges were exacerbated by the current reserve component duty status system, in which statutory duty statuses are used to order a National Guard or Reserve member to duty. Over time, the duty status system has become increasingly complex, and many efforts have been undertaken to reform the system, including an ongoing effort by the U.S. Department of Defense to streamline and simplify the duty status construct.
The authors of this report highlight challenges experienced by National Guard and Reserve members who participated in the COVID-19 response mission under the current duty status system and describe how those challenges would be mitigated by a revised duty construct."
Authors - Harrington, Lisa M., Bush, Thomas, Atkinson, Kelly, Chandler, Nathan, Schumacher, Gregory A.Subjects
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