Major General Elder Granger served as the Deputy Director and Program Executive Officer of the TRICARE Management Activity, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Health Affairs), Washington, DC from December 2005 to May 2009. In this role, he was the principal advisor to the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Health Affairs) on DoD health plan policy and performance. He oversaw the acquisition, operation and integration of DoD's managed care program within the Military Health System. MG Granger led a staff of 1,800 in planning, budgeting and executing a $22.5 Billion Defense Health Program and in ensuring the effective and efficient provision of high-quality, accessible healthcare for 9.2 Million Uniformed Service members, their families, retirees and others located worldwide.
MG Granger began his career with the Army Medical Department in 1971 as a Combat Medic in the US Army National Guard. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Arkansas State University in 1976. A Distinguished Military Graduate, MG Granger was commissioned through the Reserve Officer Training Corps. Upon graduation from the University Of Arkansas School Of Medicine in 1980, he was awarded the Henry Kaiser Medical Fellowship for Medical Excellence and Leadership. MG Granger completed a residency in Internal Medicine in 1983 and a fellowship in Hematology-Oncology in 1986 at Fitzsimons Army Medical Center. His Military education includes the Army War College, the Army Command and General Staff College, the Army Medical Department Officer Advanced and Basic Courses, the Military Health System and Army CAPSTONE Courses, and the Combat Casualty Care Course.
Prior to joining TRICARE Management Activity, MG Granger led the largest US and multi-national battlefield health system in our recent history while serving as Commander, Task Force 44th Medical Command and Command Surgeon for the Multinational Corps Iraq. He has led at every level of the Army Medical Department with previous assignments as Commander, 44th Medical Command, XVIII Airborne Corps Command Surgeon and Director of Health Services, Fort Bragg, North Carolina; Commander, US Army Europe Regional Medical Command, US Army Europe and Seventh Army Command Surgeon, and TRICARE Lead Agent Europe, Heidelberg, Germany; Acting Assistant Surgeon General for Force Projection, Office of the Surgeon General, Department of the Army, Falls Church, Virginia; Commander, Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Landstuhl, Germany; Commander, Ireland Army Community Hospital, Fort Knox, Kentucky; Division Surgeon, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colorado; Deputy Commander for Clinical Services, Raymond W. Bliss Army Community Hospital, Fort Huachuca, Arizona; Chief, Department of Medicine and Hematology Service, 2nd General Hospital, Landstuhl, Germany; and Staff Hematologist/Oncologist, Fitzsimons Army Medical Center, Aurora, Colorado.
MG Granger has received numerous awards, decorations and honors including the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Legion of Merit with three oak leaf clusters, the Bronze Star Medal, and the Meritorious Service Medal with four oak leaf clusters. He earned the Office of Secretary of Defense Staff Badge, the German Army's Ehrenkreuz der Bundeswehr Silber, the Army Medical Department's Order of Military Medical Merit, and the Expert Field Medical Badge. Also, the Army Surgeon General has bestowed upon him the "A" proficiency designator for expertise in his health profession. He is board certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine and the Board of Hematology and Oncology. His professional affiliations include Fellow and Member of the Board of Directors of the American College of Physician Executives, Member of the National Medical Association, Member of the Interagency Institute for Federal Health Care Executives, Member of the American College of Healthcare Executives, and Member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. He is a Certified Physician Executive by The Certifying Commission in Medical Management and Certified in Medical Quality by The American Board of Medical Quality. In 2008, MG Granger was recognized as a distinguished alumnus by both his undergraduate school, Arkansas State University and his medical school, the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. In 2009, he was awarded the Walter M. Schirra Leadership Award, presented by the Governor of the State of Arkansas and the Sigma Pi Fraternity. He was also appointed a clinical professorship at Dan Kook University, Korea.