VA chief visits local facilities

Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2002 | 10:03 a.m.

Each day, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Anthony Principi deals with problems from maintaining aging VA buildings to fighting for resources for a veteran population that is dwindling nationwide.

Those problems are reversed in Las Vegas.

Buildings such as the Addeliar Guy III Ambulatory Care Center on Vegas Drive and Mike O'Callaghan Federal Hospital at Nellis Air Force Base are only a few years old, and a migration of veterans to Southern Nevada keeps the population here growing.

The common thread between Las Vegas and the rest of the country is that Principi's $53 billion annual budget is not enough to meet the needs of either -- the renovation of older buildings or the expansion of growing facilities.

"Las Vegas has the opposite situation of much of the rest of the country," Principi said during a brief break in his visit to three locales Monday. "While the VA clinic in Las Vegas is relatively new, the area is outgrowing it. The question is, How long can this clinic meet the demand?"

The first of Principi's stops during a four-hour visit was the Flamingo Las Vegas, where he gave a 25-minute speech before a group of VA managers. He then addressed Korean War veterans at the Imperial Palace. His final stop was a tour of the Guy VA clinic.

Because World War II veterans, many in their 70s and 80s, are dying and because conflicts such as the Persian Gulf War and the war in Afghanistan have yielded fewer long-term wounds and other medical problems than earlier conflicts, the VA in many communities is facing smaller workloads.

Convincing Congress to approve a record $1.4 billion increase -- last year's increase was a record $1.3 billion -- for the VA budget amid questions of whether there will be a need is not an easy task for Principi and others.

"We are the stewards of a great legacy," Principi, a Vietnam War Navy combat veteran, told the VA facility managers. "We have 25 million veterans who deserve well-designed, well-constructed and well-maintained facilities.

"Some of the buildings we are putting up today may not be around for 130-plus years like those built during the Civil War, but certainly they will be used for a long time."

In his years with the VA, Principi said he has seen the agency "on the short end of appropriations" several times. Principi served as deputy secretary of the VA under the first President Bush.

Facility Manager Chuck Yarborough echoed Principi's sentiment.

"It has been a painful experience for me watching the downsizing of the last several years, but we have done more with fewer staff and fewer resources than many other federal agencies," he said.

"Our average buildings are 52 years old. As for this aging infrastructure, Congress has paid attention -- they haven't provided the funding, but they have paid attention."

The VA currently is working on 55 facility projects at a cost of $650 million.

Principi said that, despite its problems, the VA has made significant gains in the past year, including diminishing the huge backlog of veterans claims.