WASHINGTON, DC – At the request of U.S. Congressman Greg Walden (R-OR), the Secretary of Veterans Affairs has directed VA officials in the Northwest to hold a public hearing in White City to discuss the future of the Southern Oregon Rehabilitation Center and Clinics (SORCC), formerly known as the White City Domiciliary. In July a federal commission proposed closing the inpatient Domiciliary and Compensated Work Therapy programs of the SORCC and relocating them elsewhere in the Northwest, a proposal that has drawn fierce criticism from Walden and other members of the Oregon congressional delegation.

On September 5, Walden sent a letter to VA Secretary Anthony Principi requesting a public hearing in White City and followed up with a personal phone call to Principi on September 11 to reiterate his request. In his call to the VA Secretary, Walden stressed the importance of allowing VA officials to see firsthand the importance of the SORCC both to southern Oregon veterans and to the local economy. Principi informed Walden of the planned hearing this morning in a phone call to Walden’s Washington, D.C. office. The date and time of the hearing have not yet been determined.

"This hearing announcement is great news for the veterans community of southern Oregon, as well as for the dedicated employees and administrators who have made the White City Dom one of the crown jewels of the Veterans Health Administration," said Walden. "Shutting this facility down would have a devastating effect on the veterans of our region who depend on it for care, in addition to the more than 400 local residents who are employed at the SORCC. I’m pleased that the commissioners who have recommended this facility for closure will have an opportunity to see firsthand how harmful such a decision would be. I’m grateful to Secretary Principi for his personal involvement in this issue. His concern for Oregon’s veterans has been evident throughout this process, and I look forward to continuing to work with him to make sure that our veterans have access to the care that they deserve."

The SORCC provides a range of outpatient health care services to the veterans community of southern Oregon. The SORCC is the second-most cost efficient facility in the Veterans Health Administration and the highest-rated facility in patient satisfaction in Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) 20, which serves Oregon, Alaska, Idaho and Washington. It is a nationally recognized leader of inpatient domiciliary and counseling services for homeless veterans and veterans battling substance abuse.

The proposal to realign services at the SORCC was originally included in the Draft National Capitol Asset Realignment for Enhanced Service (CARES) Plan, which was released in July 2003. The CARES Plan proposed realigning the inpatient Domiciliary and Compensated Work Therapy programs at the SORCC and referring southern Oregon veterans to VA health care facilities elsewhere in VISN 20.

In response to the CARES plan, Walden and Senator Gordon Smith (R-OR) sent a letter to Secretary Principi on July 30 expressing opposition to the SORCC proposal. The Walden-Smith letter noted that rural veterans in Oregon, many of them elderly and disabled, would be required to drive extreme distances in search of care if the SORCC were closed. The letter also highlighted the economic implications to the southern Oregon economy if the large number of SORCC employees lost jobs as a result of the realignment.

Congressman Walden represents the Second Congressional District of Oregon, which includes the 20 counties of central, southern and eastern Oregon. He is a Deputy Whip and member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the House Committee on Resources.