Bronx County is home to 25,000 civilian veterans, according to the annual American Community Survey (ACS) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Though the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (V.A.) provides integrated life-long healthcare services to eligible military veterans at 1,700 V.A. medical centers and outpatient clinics located across the country, in reality, only some are covered.

During the Bronx Community Board 7 (CB7) Veterans’ Affairs Committee meeting on Feb. 17, a Union Community Health Center (UNION) representative provided an overview of the variety of health services available to Bronx veterans and their families, including help with health insurance.

While UNION, a hospital, provides primary and urgent care services, across its six locations, to all Bronx residents, the center’s veteran health care liaison, Raul Gonzalez, who presented at the CB7 meeting, provides tailored health care support to veterans and their families.

“The hospital has some limits,” said Gonzalez. “They have emergency rooms that tend to be madhouses because of the waiting times. So, if you go in with something simple like a sprained ankle or a rash, you end up waiting six or seven hours. But with something simple that doesn’t need the emergency room, veterans with Veterans Affairs benefits can go to one of our V.A.-approved, urgent care centers.”

As New York’s largest federally qualified health center (FQHC), also a VA medical center, UNION operates a borough-wide medical mobile health unit and plans to launch a dental mobile health unit this summer. In addition, there are plans to introduce on-site pharmacy services at select UNION centers, but details have yet to be released.

In addition to non-emergency services at UNION centers, veterans also have access to physical and occupational therapy, dental, urgent care, and an audiology department. “We tend to forget how noisy war is,” Gonzalez said, explaining that rifle and improvised explosive device (IED) blasts can cause hearing loss which, in turn, can lead to both depression and heart disease.

“Many veterans suffer from hearing loss, and they take it for granted. They think it’s normal,” he said. “But we can treat hearing loss and even provide veterans with hearing aids.”

The COVID-19 vaccine is also available at some UNION centers and distributed in accordance with City guidelines. Norwood News also recently reported that the Bronx V.A. Hospital, also known as the James J. Peters Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, has begun vaccinating veterans of all ages.

On the topic of insurance, CB7 committee member, Helene Redd, asked Gonzalez, “What if a veteran comes to you with their family and they’re not insured?” Indeed, while the V.A. offers health care coverage, veterans have to meet specific eligibility requirements to qualify.

However, Gonzalez said he will work with every veteran that walks through his door. “If a veteran or a member of their family comes in to get services, and they don’t have insurance, I will help them find whatever New York State coverage they’re eligible for,” he said.

“And if they don’t qualify for anything, or if money is limited, we have a sliding scale that’s based on an individual’s ability to pay, but they will not be turned away. I will help them get the insurance that they need,” he added.

Before ending his presentation, Gonzalez called on the community to assist with veteran outreach. “They usually congregate at the American Legion or a VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars) post, but COVID has made it impossible for anyone just to be together,” he said. “So, it’s really hard to know where veterans are right now.”

He was anxious for them to be aware of what services were available and also welcomed suggestions from the committee and the public. During the next Veterans Affairs committee meeting on March 17, the committee plans to provide updates on a planned veterans’ round-table discussion to be held in either April or May.

Committee and community members suggested focusing the upcoming event on veterans’ mental health, and on COVID vaccine concerns. “A lot of people, because of COVID, are suffering mental health issues because we’re all locked up in place and can’t get out to communicate with other people,” said committee member, Jean Hill. “And veterans in particular, if they had any active service duties, they may have Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) which only makes it worse.”

For more information on UNION center locations, hours of operations, and services, visit www.uchcbronx.org. To reach UCHC Veteran Health Care Liaison, Raul Gonzalez, call 718.618.8152 or email rgonzalez2@uchcbronx.org. To assist with Bronx’s veteran community outreach or to learn more about Community Board 7’s Veterans’ Affairs events and meetings, email committee chair, Chad Royer, at chadyroyer@ymail.com.