URGENT – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 10, 2025

Parking Changes Coming to OKC VA Medical Center.

OKLAHOMA CITY – Starting Monday, July 14th, the OKC VA Medical Center will be implementing new parking arrangements due to the construction of a new parking garage. Veterans are encouraged to utilize the existing parking garage, as the Northeast Parking Lot and North Entrance area, under the solar panels, will be closed.

Key Details:

• Parking Garage Access: The parking garage will be accessible only from the 13th Street entrance located on the Southeast side of the facility. Please note that the garage has a vehicle height limit of 8 feet.
• Northwest Parking Lot: An alternative parking option is available in the Northwest Parking Lot, which includes additional spaces and a new temporary entrance to the hospital on the North side. Veterans can enter from McMechan Parkway.
• Restricted Areas: Access to the Northeast Parking Lot, the North Entrance, and the former North entrance to the garage will be blocked off with fencing.

Important Notice for Drop-Off:

• Patient drop-off on the North side will not be available. Please use the drop-off circle located at the 13th Street entrance on the Southeast side of the facility.

Special Accommodations:

• The OKC VA Medical Center leadership strongly encourages Veterans, particularly those with mobility issues, to use the parking garage. It offers easy wheelchair access to both the Ground and 1st floors.
• According to Rebecca Anderson, Assistant Director of Facilities, “The first and second floors have handicapped-accessible parking, and golf carts will be available to transport Veterans from the upper floors to the entrances.”

We appreciate your understanding and cooperation during this construction period. The new arrangements are aimed at ensuring ease of access and convenience for all Veterans visiting the OKC VA Medical Center.

Thank you for your continuous support.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

OKLAHOMA CITY VA MEDICAL CENTER EMERGENCY OPERATIONS EXERCISE

Oklahoma City – The Oklahoma City VA Medical Center will be conducting an Emergency Operations Exercise on June 9^th 2025 beginning at 9:00am. 

The exercise is being conducted to prepare the OKC VA Emergency Operations team for real life incidents that may occur and ensure procedures are being followed to provide aid in the event of a mass casualty incident.

“This exercise will test the response capabilities of the OKC VA Medical Center Staff to a mass casualty event,” said Christopher Ence, Emergency Management Specialist.

During the exercise, Veterans may see emergency response staff working to provide care to mock mass casualty victims in or around the emergency department area.  Staff will respond to the different types of injuries and conditions that may occur during a mass casualty event. 

There will be no interruption to services provided to Veterans during this exercise.  If Veterans see staff participating in the exercise, the OKC VA Medical center Emergency Operations team asks that Veterans not step in to assist. 

If any media would like to cover the exercise, please contact Phillip Ybarra 405-795-4419

WASHINGTON – The Department of Veterans Affairs today announced changes that will make it easier for VA-enrolled Veterans to access health care from non-VA providers at the department’s expense.

Since 2019, the MISSION Act has enabled VA-enrolled Veterans to access health care from non-VA providers at the department’s expense when it is in their best medical interest. These decisions have been made jointly by Veterans and their referring clinicians but were not considered final until they were reviewed by a second VA doctor.

Effective immediately, VA will implement language in the Senator Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act that removes this extra review step. The change will give eligible Veterans faster access to community care.

“Under President Trump, VA is providing Veterans with more health care choices than ever before,” aid VA Secretary Doug Collins. “Now, we’re making it even easier for Veterans to get their health care when and where its most convenient for them. We are putting Veterans first at the department, and that means placing a premium on customer service and convenience. This important change will help us do just that.”

Background

Since 2019, the MISSION Act has given eligible Veterans the option of seeking community care outside VA when they meet any one of six conditions:

• When it is in the best medical interest of the Veteran.
• The care required is not available at a VA medical facility.
• The Veteran lives in a state or territory that does not have a full-service VA facility
• VA cannot meet wait time or distance standards:
  • VA cannot offer an appointment within 20 days for primary care, mental health or non-institutional extended care, or within 28 days for specialty care.
  • It takes more than a 30-minute drive to reach primary or mental health care, or a 60-minute drive for specialty care.
• VA service does not meet certain quality standards.
• The Veteran meets the grandfathered distance and location provisions of the former Veterans Choice Program.

The new, streamlined process for determining best medical interest will be backed by training for Veterans Health Administration employees to ensure compliance with the Elizabeth Dole Act.

Annual funding for some government agencies, including portions of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), expires at midnight tonight—December 20, 2024. In preparation for a potential government shutdown, the VA is preparing for all probabilities to include the possibility of a lapse in funding. This lapse would mean that some portions of the government would cease certain functions due to the lack of funding.

We know that this situation can cause stress and some confusion on whether veterans health care services and benefits will continue to be delivered. Please be assured that most essential VA operations will continue without interruption if there is a shutdown. Thanks to DAV’s advocacy efforts years prior, VA benefits payments and health care are funded through advance appropriation, meaning that no veteran, surviving spouse or dependent eligible to receive VA benefits will miss a payment.

VA projects that most of its work force would be fully funded or continue to perform expected functions during a shutdown. The Veterans Crisis Line will continue operating uninterrupted, burials and interments at veterans cemeteries will continue, as will many other essential services.

The possibility of a government shutdown should not sound the alarm to the potential of veterans losing the hard-earned benefits they deserve. We hope that Congress can work together in a bipartisan way to prevent a shutdown that impacts any of VA’s services.

Details on VA’s Contingency Plan for a potential lapse in appropriations can be found here.

Government reimbursement rates for certain types of highly specialized emergency transportation have been significantly lower than the true costs of providing such services.

Earlier this year, the VA finalized a proposed rule change to cut its reimbursement rate for emergency air medical transportation. During health emergencies, this reduction could put an estimated 4.7 million veterans living in rural and remote communities, who already struggle to get reliable access to health care, at even greater risk.

H.R. 5530, the VA Emergency Transportation Access Act, would limit the VA’s ability to change payment rates for transporting veterans and eligible individuals on specialized transportation modes.

DAV supports H.R. 5530, in accordance with DAV Resolution No. 323, which calls on VA to provide equitable access to transportation options for veterans who need specialized forms of transportation to VA facilities.

We call on DAV members and supporters to contact their representative and urge them to co-sponsor and support H.R. 5530, the VA Emergency Transportation Access Act.