On Monday, the Contra Costa Times editorial board stepped up to support Congressman Jerry McNerney's effort to not only keep the Livermore veterans hospital open -- but to expand the facility to care for soldiers with post-traumatic stress disorder.
He has a good argument.
After more than four years of war in Iraq, there are a large number of injured veterans in need of medical attention. Even more pressing is the huge number of veterans experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder.
It has been estimated that 15 percent to 30 percent of the 1.4 million military personnel who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan will suffer from PTSD and will need help in VA facilities.
With a decision on the Livermore facility "imminent" according to Congressman McNerney, the Times is encouraging Secretary Nicholson to follow the Congressman's proposal:
However, with the growing number of veterans in need of services, we urge Nicholson's department to keep the Livermore facility open.
It would be an insult to the men and women who have sacrificed so much in war zones to be denied the best medical service in VA hospitals and clinics close to where they live.
We couldn't agree more, of course.
Congressman McNerney has visited the Livermore hospital multiple times, often with "Veterans for McNerney" supporters like Lt. Col. Bill Evans, talking with many of the veterans who would be most harmed by the facility's closure. As they told Jerry and have expressed to the VA at public hearings on the issue, keeping this hospital open is vitally important to veterans across the region.
Now it's up to Secretary Nicholson to do the right thing.
To see aerial photos of the Livermore facility, check out eLivermore.com's Livermore History page.
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