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VA Announces Health Care Center in Harlingen
August 20, 2007
95 Percent of Drives to San Antonio Eliminated
WASHINGTON – A new Health Care Center in Harlingen announced today by
the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) will vastly improve care to
Valley veterans in South Texas, eliminating the vast majority of trips
required by veterans to VA medical facilities in San Antonio. The plans
will provide a new VA health care center on the campus of the University
of Texas in Harlingen.
The announcement, which came after an independent study on the future
needs of Valley veterans requested by Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison,
included plans to expand services by VA health care facilities in
McAllen and Corpus Christi.
“Once completed, the new health care center in Harlingen will eliminate
about 95 percent of the trips our veterans currently have to make to San
Antonio for medical services,” said Bill Feeley, VA’s Deputy Under
Secretary of Health for Operations and Management. “This plan will allow
us to start providing specialty services to Valley area veterans this
year, with even more expansion of services next year.”
The plans call for increasing the current VA health facility space in
Harlingen from 11,700 square feet to nearly 160,000 square feet by 2010.
The expansion will begin immediately, with space tripling VA’s current
space in Harlingen from 11,700 square feet to nearly 35,000 square feet
by December 2007, and then to nearly 56,000 square feet by December
2008.
When the facility is completed, it will provide a full range of expanded
services in collaboration with the University of Texas Regional Academic
Health Center, including:
* Specialty and diagnostic services, such as pharmacy, digital x-rays,
CT scans, MRIs and other services; and
* Outpatient surgeries, such as cataract removals, diagnostic
colonoscopies and prostate biopsies, supported by outpatient operating
rooms.
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To obtain a copy of the independent study of the health care needs of
Valley veterans, please go to this Internet address:
http://www.va.gov/opa/pressrel/docs/stv-cbm.pdf
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Larry Scott --
