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CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, The men and women who have served in this nation's |
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armed forces are entitled to ready access to the best possible |
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medical care; and |
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WHEREAS, For the more than 100,000 veterans living in the Rio |
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Grande Valley, the nearest U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs |
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hospital is in San Antonio, 300 miles and a five-hour trip away, and |
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the lack of a VA hospital in the valley has long imposed great |
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hardships on veterans in that region and on their families; and |
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WHEREAS, Veterans requesting appointments at the facility in |
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San Antonio typically wait months to be seen, even for serious |
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conditions; for those who cannot drive themselves, or who cannot |
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afford to drive, van transportation is provided by veterans service |
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groups; the lengthy trip, however, adds to the patients' physical |
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distress; no ambulances are available to convey veterans to San |
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Antonio, which makes the journey especially difficult for those who |
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are bedridden; and |
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WHEREAS, Once veterans arrive in San Antonio, they often wait |
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hours for an appointment that may take only 15 minutes, or they may |
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find that their appointment has been canceled; they may also |
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discover that they need to stay overnight, which adds to the |
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time-consuming nature of their trip and to its expense; and |
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WHEREAS, For veterans who must go to San Antonio several |
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times a month, the time lost to travel can make it difficult to hold |
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a job; the demands of such a trip also place a great burden on family |
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members who have to take off from work, and possibly arrange for |
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child care, to drive a veteran to San Antonio, and who may need to |
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make such trips for many years; the cost of gas and meals, in |
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addition to the expense of lodging, if that is required, |
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substantially exceeds the prescribed travel allowance; and |
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WHEREAS, The current facilities for veterans health care in |
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the Valley are manifestly inadequate; the VA presently operates |
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several outpatient clinics in the region, but these do not offer the |
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full range of services, including testing and therapy, available in |
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San Antonio; moreover, the VA has failed to pay the bills of many |
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veterans who have had to seek emergency care at a local hospital; in |
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addition, although there are plans to contract with area hospitals |
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to provide some in-patient veterans care, the medical personnel in |
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those facilities are unlikely to have the necessary expertise in |
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treating the injuries and psychological trauma sustained by combat |
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veterans; and |
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WHEREAS, In recent years, local veterans organizations have |
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formed the Veterans Alliance of the Rio Grande Valley to help raise |
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awareness of this issue; and |
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WHEREAS, Veterans in the Valley sorely need and clearly |
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deserve a fully staffed, full-service veterans hospital in far |
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South Texas; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the 81st Legislature of the State of Texas |
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hereby affirm its support for the establishment of a veterans |
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hospital in the Rio Grande Valley; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official |
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copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to |
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the secretary of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, to the |
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speaker of the house of representatives and the president of the |
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senate of the United States Congress, and to all the members of the |
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Texas delegation to the congress with the request that this |
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resolution be officially entered in the Congressional Record as a |
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memorial to the Congress of the United States of America. |