|
The Greenville Hospital System will be out of Allen Bennett Hospital completely and into the new facility south of Greer by the fall of 2008. The Allen Bennett facility being vacated is located at the intersection of Wade Hampton Boulevard and Memorial Drive in Greer. The hospital is conveniently located between Greenville and Spartanburg and accessible to Interstate Highways 26 and 85.
District 5 Senator Lewis Vaughn, who represents the Greer area in the South Carolina Senate, and is a Korean War era veteran, has proposed that the facility be taken over by the Veterans Administration, in need of facilities to serve veterans in the Upstate, including the increasing number of returning veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan battlefields.
The VA Clinic on Augusta Road has limited space and inadequate parking. Veterans needing specialized care or routine surgery must travel to Columbia, South Carolina or Asheville, North Carolina for medical care. The Campbell Nursing Home in Anderson, operated by the VA, is a relatively new facility, however it has a lengthy waiting list. Roger Huntington, a nursing facility that is no longer needed by the Greenville Hospital System, is attached to Allen Bennett Hospital.
Allen Bennett is equipped with a state of the art emergency facility and operating rooms that will be declared excess by the Greenville Hospital System.
It is possible that the VA could have a good facility without spending money for new construction, as construction costs skyrocket.
Greenville Hospital System President and CEO Michael Riordan has written letters to both Senator Jim DeMint and Lindsey Graham expressing willingness to discuss the matter with the VA.
Riordan said GHS would be extremely interested in pursuing the option of transferring the facility to the VA. He believes GHS, through its strong academic programs and relationships with USC schools of medicine, nursing, pharmacy and public health, “Is uniquely positioned to be a valuable resource to the Veterans Administration.”
Senator Lindsey Graham, a member of the United States Air Force Reserve and a member of both the Senate Armed Services and Veterans Affairs Committees, has pledged to continue to work to ensure South Carolina veterans have access to the best health care possible.
The Veterans Administration portion of the Appropriations Act for 2008 contains $87.5 billion for VA construction. This is a 9 percent increase over the budget for the previous year.
Matthew S. Guenther, Major, USAF, an Air Force Legislative Fellow in the Washington Office of Sen. Graham, said Sen. Graham’s office will be monitoring how the VA intends to spend the additional funds they have been given as a result of the recent complaints from wounded service members and their families.
Sen. Graham’s Office will ensure that VA officials are aware of the needs of South Carolina Veterans and that Allen Bennett Hospital is given consideration.
“As a result of these increases,” Graham said he hopes to see improvements in VA services and facilities. “Rest assured, I will continue to be a strong advocate for South Carolina military and VA installations.”
|
