BOST, WAGNER CALL ON VA TO PRIORITIZE ST. LOUIS HOSPITAL MODERNIZATION

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Reps. Mike Bost (IL-12) and Ann Wagner (MO-2) led efforts today calling on the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to move forward with critical improvements at the John Cochran VA Medical Center in St. Louis. In a letter to VA Secretary Denis McDonough, Bost and Wagner emphasized the urgent need to fund the replacement of the hospital's aging bed tower and modernize clinical services to ensure veterans from across Missouri and Southern Illinois receive the high-quality care they have earned. The letter, also signed by U.S. Reps. Sam Graves (MO-6), Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-3), and Jason Smith (MO-8), comes after repeated delays despite longstanding recognition that upgrades are needed for the medical center.

"For far too long, St. Louis and Metro East Illinois veterans served by the John A. Cochran VA Hospital have been waiting for improved medical facilities," said Bost. "The VA has recognized for well over a decade that the hospital's bed tower needs to be replaced and its clinical services need to be modernized. This project must be funded as a top priority - and it needs to happen now. As chairman of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee, I will continue working with Rep. Wagner and my colleagues in Missouri to see that the Biden administration gets this project over the finish line. Our veterans deserve it."

"Missouri veterans have served our nation with honor, and they deserve world-class treatment from the Department of Veterans Affairs," said Wagner. The VA has held up the John Cochran construction project for too long, a shameful failure that has blocked our veterans from vital modernized medical facilities. I am calling on the VA to take immediate action, request funds for this project, and treat our veterans with the respect they have earned."

The full letter can be read here.