Noteboom The Law Firm

VA Allocates Over $1 Billion ARRA Dollars

October 26, 2010 - By October 15^th of this year, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) had already distributed over $1 billion in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) funds.

Those monies are being used for very specific purposes:

• To either modernize, upgrade, or replace already established VA buildings;
• To subsidize grants to individual states for their veterans' homes; and
• To perform necessary restorations to national cemeteries.

Included in the upgrades are 14,000 spaces for beds for inpatients. Additionally, the money will be used for repairing or restoring 16 pharmacies and over 14,400 various enhancements to clinics. Many of these clinics boast multiple exam rooms. Over $150 million in ARRA funds will be directed specifically towards either building or attaining nursing homes and adult care facilities. In an answer to one problem many people have complained about, the VA is also adding or repairing over 26,000 parking spaces.

The upgrades the VA has planned for their medical facilities are very detailed and include energy saving improvements and studies. The VA will install wind turbines and geothermal systems at select locations, along with renewably fueled co-generation systems and solar photovoltaic systems. Every medical facility owned by the VA will be retrofitted with metering systems.

The VA is taking huge steps with the energy-improving systems they are putting into place. Nationwide, VA facilities will be improved to become more energy efficient and lower their costs. At the same time, they will create more beds and improve the system for veterans and their families.