The final patient from Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington D.C. arrives at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. on Saturday, Aug. 27, 2011. Maggie Starbard/NPR hide caption
Closing Walter Reed Walter Reed Army Medical Center is closing, part of the military's plan to save billions of dollars.
Special Series
Closing Walter Reed
Walter Reed Army Medical Center is closing, part of the military's plan to save billions of dollars.
A lab technician prepares blood samples from volunteers for viral genotyping at a government-run health center in Bagamoyo, Tanzania, in 2009. Tanzania is currently hosting the final stages of a human trial of a pioneering vaccine against malaria. The vaccine is one of many medical innovations to emerge from Walter Reed over the decades. Tony Karumba/AFP/Getty Images hide caption
At Walter Reed, Oscar Olguin and his family were visited by President Bush and first lady Laura Bush. But Olguin says that when he left the hospital, he had to fend for himself. Courtesy of Oscar Olguin hide caption
Gen. John Joseph Pershing's room at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, the military's flagship hospital. The center is closing its doors after treating hundreds of thousands of America's war wounded, and several presidents. Luis Alvarez/AP hide caption
A nurse massages the amputated leg of a World War I patient. National Museum of Health and Medicine hide caption
BRAC Commission Chairman Anthony J. Principi, and other member of the commission raise their hands in favor of closing Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington during a base closing hearing Aug. 25, 2005 in Arlington, Va. Mark Wilson/Getty Images hide caption