Franken Unveils Health Bill For Rural Vets
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- On this Veterans Day, U.S. Senator Al Franken has unveiled a bill that would provide better health care for vets in rural areas.
Franken cited the cases of two veterans in smaller communities who couldn't access care from the VA.
"Men who had had heart attacks," explained Franken. "And the VA facility didn't have an emergency room for that. So they had to go to a certain hospital -- not a VA hospital -- and ended up saddled with the bills."
Franken's bill would recruit VA health care providers for rural clinics, expand the use of "telemedicine" and improve the use of mobile outpatient facilities.
Forty percent of all veterans in the VA health system live in rural areas.
NewsRadio 830 WCCO's Steve Murphy Reports
