Report calls for shutting down Alexandria VA Medical Center, moving services
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has announced a proposal to close its medical center in Pineville, which U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy has called "infuriating."
The proposal to close the Alexandria VA Medical Center was included in a report released by the Asset and Infrastructure Review Commission.
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The report states that the Alexandria facility, built in 1950, does not meet current design standards and "facility condition assessment deficiencies" are about $156.9 million. Annual operation and maintenance costs are estimated at $9.8 million.
It recommends moving the inpatient medicine, mental health and outpatient surgical services from the VA to local providers.
Cassidy, a physician, released a statement via email on Tuesday about the proposal.
"This abrupt proposal is infuriating for many. I spoke with an official at the VA, and they assured me that there will continue to be a VA presence in Alexandria," it read. "If the administration’s proposal goes into effect, provisions I worked to include in the VA Mission Act will allow veterans to access quality care at non-VA health facilities near them."
The report does call for maintaining community living center services within VA facilities in Alexandria. The medical center ranks 139th out of 154 VA training sites, based on the number of trainees, it reads.
And it states the site conducts "limited or no research.
"None of the VAMCs in the market have an emergency designation."
But even with the call to shutter the VA medical center, the report states the number of enrolled veterans and demand for services is expected to increase in its south market that covers Central and Southern Louisiana, southern Mississippi and Alabama and the western Florida Panhandle.
It had 207,701 enrollees in fiscal year 2019, and it states that's expected to increase by 6.3% by fiscal year 2029.
"Demand in the market for inpatient medical and surgical services is projected to decrease by 17.9% and demand for inpatient mental health services is projected to increase by 17.6%" in the same period, reads the report.
Long-term care demand is expected to increase by 52%. Demand for all outpatient services — primary care, mental health, specialty care, dental care and rehabilitation therapies — also is expected to increase.
Despite that, the report states leaving the Alexandria site open is "not sustainable due to the VAMC's declining demand, enrollee population and aging infrastructure."
There was a decrease in those seeking inpatient mental-health services and outpatient surgery cases. It calls for demand to decrease more as the medical center in New Orleans becomes fully functional.
This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: Sen. Cassidy: Proposal to close Alexandria VA 'infuriating'
