The L-A area could accommodate veterans from central, southern and western Maine.

Lewiston-Auburn is ideally suited for a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs community-based outpatient clinic to service veterans who live north of Cumberland County. A group of local veterans is working closely with our legislative delegation in Washington to create such a clinic. In fact, Rep. Michael Michaud, D-Maine, has co-authored a bill examining the costs of providing primary and mental health care in several Maine communities.

A clinic for veterans should be located in L-A most notably because of the caliber and quality of the health care resources in the community. Home to both Central Maine Medical Center and St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center, along with organizations as Androscoggin Home Care and Hospice and Central Maine Orthopedics, Lewiston-Auburn provides the state’s finest specialty care in areas such as neurosurgery, radiology, cardiac care, mental health counseling, oncology/cancer treatment, osteopathic services and geriatric services.

More people are employed in health care services in L-A than in any other industry. Such resources would allow for collaboration and partnerships with a local clinic.

While the nearest facility in Togus is a fine institution, it is often too far away to reasonably accommodate local veterans, many of them elderly and in poor health. The lengthy drive is difficult.

Furthermore, Lewiston-Auburn is centrally located to accommodate veterans from central, southern and western Maine. In fact, nearly half the state’s population is located within 30 miles of the Twin Cities. This would make L-A accessible to veterans in numerous communities throughout Androscoggin, Franklin, Oxford, Cumberland, Kennebec, and Sagadahoc counties.

Living in the second largest community in Maine, the veterans of central Maine deserve to have top-notch health care, and we’re confident that the Twin Cities have the resources, expertise, and the will to house the state’s finest veterans outpatient clinic. It’s critical to provide health services to the men and women who have sacrificed so much for our freedom.

Many of the state’s veterans lived and worked in Central Maine when they were called to military duty or volunteered to sacrifice their livelihood and family time to protect our nation. In fact, an estimated 11,000 veterans now live in, or near, L-A. They were at our country’s service when they were needed the most.

Now, L-A is ready and able to return the favor, meeting the needs of veterans when they need us the most – when they are sick and vulnerable.

Jerry DeWitt is a deputy national representative for the American Red Cross.