Washington-- CNMI Delegate to Congress Gregorio 'Kilili' Sablan says that the House Veterans Affairs' Committee voted in favor of his amendment requiring a report on the feasibility of putting a VA-staffed health clinic in the Marianas.
Sablan told constituents in an email report, "We are one of the few areas of the country without easy access to a clinic. Getting one is my top priority now that I am a member of the Veterans Affairs' Committee.
My amendment becomes part of the bill making the Choice program permanent. Choice pays for veterans in areas like ours, where vets have to travel by plane to get to a VA clinic, to go to private health care providers instead."
According to Sablan, about 70 local doctors and clinics were persuaded to sign on to Choice this year as part of an outreach effort for Marianas veterans. And there was also an educational effort to make sure veterans know that Choice is now an option for them and to understand how to use the system.
Sablan expects the Choice bill, H.R. 4242, to go to the full House for a vote in January.