VA medical center still on track for February opening

Although rising costs and material shortages have caused building project delays from coast to coast, the Veterans Affairs Health Care Center under construction on South Mount Auburn Road in Cape Girardeau remains on pace for an opening early next year.

"As of right now, we are still on schedule with plans to take possession of the building in late November and tentatively open to patients sometime in February," said Libby Johnson, associate director at the John J. Pershing VA Medical Center in Poplar Bluff, Missouri.

Johnson is overseeing construction of the 45,000-square-foot health center that began in May 2020 and will serve as the facility's administrator. Originally budgeted at about $47.4 million, she said the project's final cost will be somewhat higher.

"I know we have some increased costs due to economic factors and some additional needs that were identified during construction," she said. "But I don't have exact numbers on those right now."

Johnson estimated work on the health center is about 80% complete. "Just some finishing touches, millwork, painting, etc. is going on now," she said.

Cardboard and plywood protect the lobby floor Tuesday at the VA Health Care Center under construction on South Mount Auburn Road in Cape Girardeau.Submitted

The existing VA clinic on William Street in front of West Park Mall has about 30 employees and serves approximately 5,000 enrolled veterans. The new outpatient facility will provide jobs for around 100 more employees and will serve an estimated 8,000 veterans.

"We've begun hiring already," Johnson said. "We will have a variety of positions hired in the next six months including nursing staff, physicians, ancillary support including lab, radiology and pharmacy personnel, administrative and clerical support, housekeeping and police officers."

A number of position openings have been posted on the VA's public job board, www.usajobs.gov.

General and specialized services for veterans at the Cape Girardeau Health Care Center will include primary care, mental health, gastroenterology, urology, dermatology, hematology/oncology, orthopedics, optometry, audiology, pain management, cardiology, pulmonology, radiology, laboratory, pharmacy and general outpatient surgery.

Enrollment information is available to veterans online at www.vets.gov or by calling (573) 778-4680.

The registration area at the VA Health Care Center in Cape Girardeau, shown here in this photo taken Tuesday, provides ample space to accommodate patient privacy needs. The $47.4 million outpatient medical facility is slated to open in February 2022.Submitted

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