Keeping Our Promise To Nebraska’s Veterans
Our military is the finest fighting force for freedom and security the world has ever known and every last one of them is a volunteer. When the call to arms was sounded, it was they who stepped forward and said, “Send me.” Nebraska is home to more than 150,000 veterans. These heroes have put everything at risk to defend our freedoms. Our troops risk life and limb and spend great lengths of time away from their families so the rest of us do not have to. In return for their service and sacrifice, we made a promise to take care of them and their families when they come home. Ensuring our veterans have access to the health care they need is one of our nation’s most solemn obligations.
My grandfather’s military service in the South Pacific during World War II has instilled in me a tremendous amount of respect for our troops. My admiration for them only has grown since serving in Congress, which is why I founded and still co-chair the bipartisan Congressional Rural Veterans Caucus.
Needless to say, I am concerned about a recent proposal to reduce services at the VA medical facility in Hot Springs, South Dakota, which provides essential medical care to literally thousands of Nebraska veterans. Health care access in general is an important issue in rural areas like Nebraska, let alone for our state’s veterans. Moreover, additional service reductions would force veterans in rural Nebraska to drive unreasonably long distances to receive care. Increasing the distances veterans are forced to travel causes many to simply choose to delay or even go without the care they require.
In response, I wrote a letter to Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki and another letter to Stephen DiStasio, the new Director of the VA Black Hills Health Care System. In both, I expressed my concerns with the VA’s proposal and specifically requested to Director DiStasio an additional community meeting in the Third District. I am pleased to say there have been additional public meetings in Alliance and Chadron as a result, and I urge the VA to carefully consider the public input from these forums.
Rest assured I stand ready to assist any veteran in the Third District who is having issues with the VA or any other federal agency. Recently, I had the pleasure of helping a Nebraska veteran who had been denied the reinstatement of his VA health care contract following a hospital stay. By working with the Department of Veterans Affairs, I was able to have the decision revisited and ultimately reversed. It is my goal to ensure rural veterans in the Third District and across the country maintain their access to the health care they were promised by serving this country.
With a new generation of American heroes returning home after a decade of war and members of the Greatest Generation in need of some of the most acute care, now is not the time to reduce access for our veterans. Caring for our nation’s sick and disabled veterans and their families is a sacred obligation – one promised to them when they volunteered their service. If you are a veteran living in the Third District and have questions, feel free to contact any of my offices or connect with me at my website: https://adriansmith.house.gov.