Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
New Mexico’s congressional delegation is pushing for “improved medical support” at Cannon Air Force Base.
On Tuesday, U.S. Sens. Ben Ray Luján and Martin Heinrich, along with U.S. Reps. Teresa Leger Fernández, Melanie Stansbury and Gabe Vasquez joined together in writing to the Defense Health Agency to encourage improved medical support at Cannon and review any barriers that limit medical services hiring or contracting.
Describing Cannon’s location as “remote,” the delegation expressed concern about “limited access to critical medical care and services” having a significant impact on Air Force personnel and their families, according to a news release from Lujan’s office.
“Our concerns stem from reports indicating that 19% of all dependents and a staggering 44% of pediatric dependents with special medical needs cannot receive the medical care they need should their family be stationed at Cannon AFB,” according to the release.
The delegation also expressed concern that basic pharmacy services “are not readily accessible,” requiring beneficiaries to drive 30 minutes or more for pharmacy services.
“DHA has the resources to alleviate this problem through personnel manning or contracting at the on-base hospital. We respectfully request that you do a comprehensive review to identify any barriers to timely civilian hiring, manning assistance, and contract funding, and provide a briefing to our offices on your findings,” the delegation noted in the release.
Another aspect pointed out by the delegation is the Air Force reporting there is an estimated annual loss of 25,000 duty days and an expenditure of approximately $750,000 in travel reimbursements due to the limited availability of care in the local area.
“We understand that the DHA and Air Force cannot rectify this situation on its own which is why we are working with the State of New Mexico to identify ways the state can also help sponsor graduate medication education in the Clovis area or incentivize medical personnel to reside near Clovis,” the delegation letter reads.
