Appeal Capitol Bureau - Nevada Senators Harry Reid, Democrat, and John Ensign, Republican, have asked the federal Secretary for Veterans Affairs to set up a system so veterans in the Elko area can get medical help without traveling.
The veterans living there, they said, must travel 250 miles to the nearest VA hospital.
"This is an intolerable situation that has existed for far too long," they said in their letter to James Nicholson of the VA.
The senators pointed out Nicholson has the ability to fix the situation by setting up to a Fee ID Card system for Elko veterans.
Using fee cards, the veterans could get medical and other services provided to veterans locally. They described it as a common sense solution to the fact that VA healthcare services are geographically inaccessible in the northeast corner of Nevada.