Behind Friendly Lines: Two updates veterans need to know

LTC Jason Strickland
As a retired veteran, I have full TriCare benefits. However, I did take advantage of the VA's offer to roll out the COVID vaccinations to include those of us on TriCare. I'm glad I did, as I got to see the amazing facility. When I was active duty, I was frequently disappointed in the state of the VA facilities in several states, as I was a member of an active duty medical team asked to look into them as part of the HSMI standards. We came away upset at the lack of funding for needed items.

President Obama's campaign promise to push for revamping the VA system was a bold one. And yet, it did happen. The million$ budgeted for the system's improvements are quite visible in the way those facilities now conduct business, and the environment that's now there for veterans.

Last year, I stopped into the VA Medical Center here in Richmond, VA to get my COVID shot when they offered it to all military types, including those of us in TriCare.

I was blown away by the facility--it's like an open air mall, with huge skylights several floors above the concourse, spreading the energy of sunlight throughout, and--wonderfully--the sight of many older vets from the Vietnam era, etc., relaxed in the spacious waiting/lounge area, with access to a variety of food venues, smiling and laughing and enjoying each other's stories. A sight to behold and preserve in memory! One of the guides, a retired army SFC, told me the facility was one of the first in the US to benefit from that years-long fight President Obama won to sequester funds for upgrading all the VA facilities in the United States. Impressive facility, to say the least.