The Franklin VA Out-Patient Clinic was on the drawing boards for over 5 years. A retired military officer donated the building. Taylor did not do crap! And here is what he did not tell you!

I HAVE GOOD NEWS and I HAVE BAD NEWS -- VA will open 25

new Community-Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs).

Most, if not all, of the clinics' operations will be

outsourced. Another step in privatizing the VA.

First, congratulations to the veterans in the communities listed below.

You will be getting a VA Community-Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) soon.

That's the good news.

The bad news is that most, if not all, of these clinics will be run by private operators...outsourced...privatized...you pick the word.

Here's a look at one CBOC operator, MedMark Services, Inc... http://www.medmark.com/pr01.htm

While this may be beneficial to many veterans who don't have a VA hospital nearby...it is just the next step in privatizing the VA and, most likely, turning it into a HMO...like TRICARE.

And, we know how much retirees pay for TRICARE.

Another consideration...Are you really comfortable letting these contractors have access to your records?

And, why would the VA want to pay more instead of building clinics and hiring VA employees. All studies show that government healthcare (VA and Medicare) is much more efficient and much less costly than private healthcare.

Unless...somebody's buddy is making a killing on these CBOC contracts. Think about it.....

VA press release here... http://www.vawatchdog.org/vapressrelease/vapressrelease06-23-06.htm

Press release below:

---------------

VA Expands Service by Opening 25 New Clinics

June 23, 2006

World-Class Health Care Brought Closer to More Veterans

WASHINGTON – To provide world-class health care closer to where more veterans live, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs today announced plans to open 25 new community-based clinics in 17 states and American Somoa.

“VA has established itself as one of the top health care organizations in the country,” said the Honorable R. James Nicholson, Secretary of Veterans Affairs. “By putting health care facilities in more communities, we’re enhancing veterans’ access to VA’s world-class health care.”

With 156 hospitals and more than 700 community-based clinics, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) operates the largest integrated health care system in the country. VA’s health care budget of nearly $30 billion this year will provide health care to about 5.4 million people during nearly 600,000 hospitalizations and 55 million outpatient visits.

“Community-based medicine enhances preventative care, allows for closer doctor-patient relationships and makes it easier for follow-up for people with chronic problems,” said Dr. Jonathan B. Perlin, VA’s Under Secretary for Health.

The new facilities, called community-based outpatient clinics, or CBOCs, will start becoming operational this year. Local VA officials will keep communities and their veterans informed of milestones in the creation of the new CBOCs.

A list of the new community clinics follows:

VA’s Proposed Sites for New Outpatient Clinics

* Alabama -- Bessemer
* American Samoa
* Arizona – Miami-Globe, northwest Tucson, southeast Tucson
* California – S. Orange County
* Delaware – Dover
* Georgia – Athens
* Idaho – Canyon County
* Iowa – Spirit Lake
* Kentucky – Hazard, Florence
* Minnesota – Bemidji
* Nebraska -- Holdrege
* Nevada -- Fallon
* North Carolina – Franklin, Hamlet, Hickory
* Ohio – Cambridge, Newark
* Tennessee – Hamblen
* Texas -- Conroe
* Virginia – Lynchburg, Norfolk
* Wisconsin – Rice Lake