Public-private partnership could pave way for new $136 million VA facility in Omaha

[Omaha Steve]

Source: Omaha World Herald

By Joseph Morton

WASHINGTON — The Department of Veterans Affairs is looking to build a new $136 million facility on the site of Omaha’s current hospital, using a mix of public and private money.

That’s according to Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert McDonald, who testified Wednesday before a key House subcommittee.

“I think public-private partnership is the way of the future for us,” McDonald told the panel. “We need to prove out this model, and I think Omaha is a good place to do it.”

The 157,000-square-foot facility envisioned would include primary, specialty and ambulatory care, as well as radiology and surgical capabilities, the secretary said.

FULL story at link.

Read more: http://www.livewellnebraska.com/public-private-partnership-could-pave-way-for-new-million-va/article_27837379-d7f7-549a-97ce-225b85ab657f.html

[Old Vet]

1. Long time coming for those vets..........

where the nearest VA is so far away.

[Victor_c3]

2. I'm sorry for my cynicism, but none of the VA projects should ever have to involve private money

It's funny how money comes out of the woodwork to start and escalate wars at the whim of an elected official, but as soon as money is needed to take care of the disabled vets produced by these wars all of a sudden things start to become too expensive for the government to foot the bill for on their own.

[silvershadow]

3. I'm sorry for my cynicism, but anytime I see public-private partnership I think

"Here comes more privatization. Here comes more welfare for corporations, and less benefits" I think "Here comes graft and overspending". Not buying it.

[Divernan]

4. Privatization =s adding a layer of profit to the cost of any service

And that means either:
(1)the price for the services goes up (Eat that, taxpayers!),

OR

(2) the quality of the services deteriorates. For example, in the case of privatized prisons, cuts to services included quality and amount of food per prisoner, medical care provided to prisoners, replacing full time employees with part time employees with no benefits, reducing job/training requirements and therefore compensation for employees, etc.

Most likely both options one AND two!


But hey! it creates another revolving door between a government agency and private industry.

Plus, it creates another funnel to siphon tax payers' dollars upward to corporate stock holders. Yes! The One Percent can slurp up more cash, this time from the VA. Very creative on their part~

The VA system is in dire need of change to make medical care available to veterans within a reasonable distance from their homes. Privatization is NOT the way to go. And here's the deal. As retired Navy Admiral Joe Sestak explained it at a talk I heard him give last week, we have a perfect storm of vets flooding the VA system and they are in dire need of medical care. The older they are, the more care they need. So we still have very elderly WW II vets; we have Korean war vets, we have Vietnam vets, and then all the vets from our middle east wars, with no end in sight on the latter source of wounded soldiers. As Sestak says, if a country is going to send its people to fight, it had damn well better take care of them when they return home.

He pointed out that 20 percent of all homeless are veterans.

Coming soon! MIC expands to marketing privatized housing for homeless vets.

[bonniebgood]

12. I don't agree it's either or. I believe the prices goes up AND

the quality of service goes down. Partnership my arste. A disaster waiting to happen.

[unhappycamper]

5. If they are going to privatize the VA,

they should also privatize the DoD.

[mtasselin]

7. They have

They have, we send in all these private contractors to Iraq and all they are is mercenaries they get paid 3 or 4 times what a soldier does, but does the same thing.

[mtasselin]

6. no way

No way should this ever be allowed to happen, we have seen how well privatization has work in the schools, prisons, water systems and this will create an even bigger mess. There will be cost overruns that the taxpayer is going to pick up and if tpp would ever become law these corporations would never lose money and what if some foreign corporation wants to come in and manage it or build it you could not stop it. Remember our current president that I voted for twice could stop this if he wanted to, but will not because they own him.

[sulphurdunn]

8. Privatization is just a scam to guarantee profits

at public expense.

[Vinca]

9. I'm glad there is a facility being built, but it shouldn't be with private funds.

Our tax dollars line the pockets of too many private firms as it is. How much of the pie will the private part of the partnership earn and how much will it increase costs?

[tom_kelly]

10. Bernie would veto this without question and so would I n/t

[Old Vet]

11. although its public/private..........

Theres nowhere for these vets in that area to go, Like myself Iam 100% service connected and would have a horrible time traveling. Maybe that's why there trying to fast track this re-model of a old hospital, Guess I have a dog in this fight since all my medical care is covered thru the VA and theres a lot of brothers hurting out there.

[Divernan]

13. You are entitled to the best of care, absolutely.

But the federal government should foot the bill. As retired Admiral/former U.S. Congressman and current Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate. Joe Sestak said in a recent talk, if the government can't afford to care for returning servicemen via the V.A. Hospital system, it can't afford to go to war in the first place.