Bush rejects plan to shut veterans hospital

By Matthew Daly
The Associated Press

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The administration also confirmed it will look at reducing the size of the Veterans Affairs campus in Vancouver, Wash., rather than abandoning it and will explore ways to relocate some services there from the Portland veterans hospital.

As part of a national restructuring review, Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi ordered a comprehensive study of the Walla Walla campus to determine how to improve care while maximizing use of federal resources.

Principi planned to announce full details at a news conference today, but members of Congress and some veterans groups were briefed on the administration's plan yesterday.

Lawmakers in Washington state and Oregon, who had urged the administration to reject the proposal to close the hospital, were delighted.

"I am so relieved, for all the veterans and the whole community who worked so hard to make their voices heard," said U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash. "It made a difference."

Murray met with Principi yesterday in a last-minute appeal to save the hospital and sent President Bush a handwritten note last week.

Murray and others working to keep the hospital cautioned that the fight is not over.

While immediate closure has been averted, the comprehensive study could still recommend closure as one option as it develops a master plan for the medical center and campus.

"This is a victory lap, no doubt," Murray said. "The challenge now is to work with the local leaders on a long-range plan to ensure long-term care."

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company

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