Vets, Don’t Dally; We Need a Closer VA Facility

We men are a stubborn lot. Sometimes it imperils us. At other times, it makes us look rather simple.
It has been broadcast that we often take better care of our cars and boats than we do of ourselves, and that is likely true.
A little pain in the left chest is probably just a muscle spasm. Problems going to the bathroom? Just something that happens to older people.
Getting “a spell” or a little dizzy on climbing stairs is “just one of those things.”
All are valid reasons to see a medical doctor, yet many of my brethren will ignore the symptoms for too long, sadly, until it may be too late for corrective action to be taken.
Then, there are us veterans. We know there are certain benefits set aside for us, like medical care for those who served in varying wars and times of national crisis.
Maybe no one every fully explained that those medical benefits, including a Veterans Administration clinic at the Cape May Coast Guard Training Center, are within reach of those who apply.
Being stubborn, many guys have not and will not. Others, once they learn of the benefits, may look into the program.
The key, of course, is to file an application, register, and learn what is available to you, especially in these uncertain times.
I know there are many veterans in Cape May County who have every right to visit that VA clinic, but who are too stubborn to register, and because of that, all of us remain among the underserved.
Recently, at a county Chamber of Commerce meeting, First District Sen. Jeff Van Drew and Assemblyman Nelson Albano brought to the gathering a very important message to members, but more importantly, to my fellow veterans.
Albano spoke of an ongoing effort by a bipartisan group of legislators who are attempting to get the federal Veterans Administration to consider former Kessler Memorial Hospital, in Hammonton, as a 100-bed VA hospital.
Yes, there are other VA hospitals, if you don’t mind traveling. One’s in Philadelphia, the other in Wilmington, Del. The latter is where vets from here go for a variety of medical procedures.
Is it far? Maybe 65 miles and an hour and half, if you drive a fast car. Trouble is, many of those veterans are past the age of driving, and must rely on others for transportation, including the county’s Fare Free transit system.
For them, a visit to Wilmington can turn into an all-day odyssey, according to Albano.
That is why it makes sense to me, and ought to make sense to every other man and woman who served this nation in time of war or national crisis, to enlist, once again, only this time in the legion of veterans who need to stand up, speak and be counted.
If the VA sees a vast number of underserved veterans, I would venture to say it might change its bureaucratic mind.
According to Albano, initial meetings with VA representatives went nowhere fast. They could be described, in diplomatic terms, as “frank.”
Translated, that means nothing happened. We need to get those talks rolling along, since health care is a touchtone on everyone’s mind today.
The Cape May County Board of Chosen Freeholders on Aug. 25 passed a resolution that asks the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to establish a health care center facility program for vets in South Jersey at that former Hammonton site.
That resolution attests to the fact that Van Drew and Sen. Christopher J. Connors (R-9th), whose Ocean County district included, what is reported to be, the largest population of retired veterans in the Garden State, are heading that bipartisan effort to aid vets in this region.
“Cape May County alone is home to approximately 20,000 veterans who often have to travel to the Wilmington Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, approximately two hours away, or to the Philadelphia…VA center…with both facilities requiring the aging population of veterans to incur significant expense in gas and tolls.”
It also notes that the Kessler facility is presently used by AtlantiCare as an emergency care clinic. The site, states the resolution, “Would be an ideal location for such a facility to serve the numerous veterans of not only Cape May County but those of Atlantic, Cumberland, Ocean, Burlington and Salem County as well, without requiring those who have served our country to travel over an hour and a half.”
Further, it adds, U.S. Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R-2nd) is on board with the concept.
One thing that Albano told the chamber about that “frank” meeting with the VA official from Philadelphia, the agency never counted the Ocean County veterans in its census of vets. (The largest number in the state, and yet they were not counted!) Those poor guys and gals have to travel to East Orange for VA medical care.
Even stubborn people can see why there is a need for a closer VA medical facility to us. All we need to do now is to convince the VA that there are 20,000 strong right here who need medical services.
If you are a vet, and don’t want to help yourself, I can appreciate that. It took three days in a hospital bed to convince me I was not taking care of myself some years ago. If you are that stubborn, think of veteran buddies who need help. Aid could be gotten in Hammonton, not Wilmington or Philly. Do it for them. Register for VA benefits.
Numbers are the only thing government bureaucrats understand. Then, contact your legislators, Republicans and Democrats, and urge them to get behind this proposal.
The government is giving away billions of dollars right now; we may as well get some of it for a small VA hospital in Hammonton.
For once in your life, don’t be stubborn. Your life could be changed, maybe saved if you take action.
This is one of the best ways that government can spend money, and aid those who helped when the need arose in perilous times past.