Politics & Government

Cooper University Health Care to Offer Same Day Care For Veterans

New patients can wait an average of 25 days for primary care currently.

Cooper University Health Care's new program promises same-day service for veterans seeking primary care.

The program, known as the "Cooper Veterans VIP Priority" program, was announced on Tuesday afternoon.

“Cooper University Health Care’s new Cooper Veterans VIP Priority program is a great service for area veterans who have experienced difficulty in obtaining timely attention from healthcare professionals,” Freeholder Deputy Director Ed McDonnell, liaison to the Camden County Office of Veterans Affairs, said. “This is now an invaluable tool at the disposal of our veteran service officers to assist our nation’s bravest to get the medical attention they deserve in an immediate fashion.”

Cooper University Health Care’s program promises same-day service for area veterans seeking primary care, as well as dedicated health professionals to assist them with their overall health care needs.

In New Jersey, new patients can wait an average of 25 days for primary care, according to Cooper. New patients seeking specialty care within the VA New Jersey Health Care System wait an average of 47 days, according to a recent audit of the Veterans Administration.

The average wait time for a mental health appointment was nearly 30 days for a new patient. An audit of 731 VA sites nationwide flagged about 15 percent of those facilities for further review, including those in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

“By operating a County Veterans Affairs department we know all of our men and women who have served this country in combat are VIPs,” McDonnell said. “We know that providing this same day medical service is what they deserve for their tireless sacrifices and we will be working to ensure all 34,000 Camden County Veterans take advantage of this program.”  

This program will serve veterans in the seven southern New Jersey counties.

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