U.S. Rep. Lynn Jenkins (R-KS) and U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS) sent a letter to the director of the Veterans Affairs (VA) Heartland Network, detailing their concerns over a perceived lack of support from the VA’s Washington, D.C., headquarters to assist with the continued problems at the Colmery-O’Neil VA Medical Center emergency room in Topeka, Kansas.
The issues at the Topeka facility go back at least to August 2013, when Jenkins and Moran first raised concerns with then-Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Eric Shinseki. The situation remains uncertain, with the House duo reporting little progress being made in Washington on the matter.
“We can all agree that our veterans deserve the highest quality of care possible, yet more than a year has passed, and veterans are still not able to receive emergency care from Colmery-O’Neil,” Jenkins said. “This situation is unacceptable and must be resolved immediately. Rather than more excuses and inaction from leaders at the VA in Washington, our veterans deserve results and care that is worthy of their service to our nation.”
“Veterans who have served our nation with duty and honor deserve access to quality health care when they need it,” Moran said. “Because Kansas is a rural state, many of our veterans are already forced to travel long distances to visit a VA hospital. For more than a year, Topeka veterans have been without the emergency care services they could need at any moment. We will continue to press VA leadership in Washington for answers to make certain veterans in Kansas and across the country get the care they earned.”