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Senators ask that Canandaigua VA stay open
By Matthew Daneman
Staff Writer
New York's two U.S. senators, Charles Schumer and Hillary Clinton, and U.S.
Rep. James Walsh of Syracuse all have sent letters to Veterans Affairs Secretary
Anthony Principi, arguing against the VA's proposed closing of the Canandaigua
hospital.
" In the strongest possible terms, I believe closing the Canandaigua
hospital would be a major mistake with grave consequences for our veteran
community," Walsh, a Republican, wrote the VA in a letter dated Monday.
Walsh is chairman of the House Subcommittee on the Departments of Veterans
Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies.
In his letter, Schumer, a Democrat, argued that closing the hospital would
adversely impact the Ontario County economy and deprive area veterans of
accessible health care.
Under the VA's Capital Asset Realignment for Enhanced Service plan, the 70
year-old Canandaigua veteran's hospital would be closed, and roughly 200
inpatients and thousands of outpatients would be reassigned to other VA
hospitals scattered across western New York. The hospital, with 800 workers, is
one of Ontario County's largest employers.
And in a separate letter to Principi, Clinton decried VA plans to close VA
hospitals in Montrose, Westchester County, and in Manhattan, as well as the
Canandaigua hospital.
" At this critical time in our nation's history, we must show our veterans
- not just tell them - that we are gratefuul for their service to our
country," Clinton, a Democrat and a member of the Senate Armed Services
Committee, said in a statement.
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Canandaigua AFGE Local 3306