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VA Hospital

News regarding the proposed Veterans Affairs Hospital, Clinic and Columbarium

! ! ! ! ! ! at Alameda Point

The proposed 2011 VA budget submitted to Congress includes an appropriation for $17 million to begin design work on the new facilities at Alameda Point. Estimated cost for the entire project is $210 million. VA budget excerpt below.

AlamedaPointInfo.com Special Feature March 2010

Hospital will be located directly to the left of runway foreground.

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PowerPoint Presentationhttp://www.bracpmo.navy.mil/base_docs/nas_alameda/documents/enviro_docs/20081218PublicInfoMeetingSlides.pdf

Map produced by VA as part of their PowerPoint presentation. Link to full PowerPoint below.

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Area where proposed columbarium will be located. Looking toward San Francisco.

VA structural diagram produced by VA.

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Seaplane Lagoon in background along with USS Hornet and maritime ready reserve ships at dock. Looking southeast.

Proposed Northern California VA health care facility and offices will be located in the foreground of photos above and below on part of the Alameda National Wildlife Refuge transferred to VA.

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VA’s Alameda Point budget proposal for 2011

Excerpt:Alameda Point, California Outpatient Clinic and ColumbariumThis project will construct an Outpatient Clinic, a VA/DoD satellite Primary Care Clinic and Ambulatory Surgical Center, a Columbarium, administrative space for NCA and VBA support and parking on BRAC property. Funding requested in FY2011 is for the design of the project.

I. Budget Authority Total Estimated Cost 2011 Request Future Request Cost 1,2 $ 210,600,000 $17,332,000 193,268,000

1/Total estimated cost may be revised based on completed design of the project. 2/ Non-construction costs of $2,000,000 for columbarium niche covers will be requested in the Compensation and Pensions Appropriation.

II. Priority Score: FY 2011 - 0.310

III. Description of ProjectThis project will construct an Outpatient Clinic (OPC), a columbarium, administrative space for NCA and VBA and all associated parking on BRAC property at Alameda Point (former Naval Air Station) in Northern Alameda County. VA plans to pursue the land for this project will be acquired through a no cost land transfer from the Department of Defense. This project will also construct a US Air Force satellite Primary Care Clinic and a jointly staffed VA/DoD Joint Ambulatory Surgical Center. This new, state-of-the-art OPC and administrative space will be approximately 150,000 GSF and provide Primary Care, Specialty Care, Ancillary Services, Mental Health, Substance Abuse, and Ambulatory Surgery.

IV. Priorities/Deficiencies AddressedThis project will improve continuity of care by consolidating two geographically separated VA clinics. Consolidating two clinics into a modern healthcare campus will ensure coordinated care with a team of clinicians for all levels of outpatient services in a single location. In addition, this reduces the patient’s travel between sites as well as staff’s travel, which assists in reducing costs and increasing efficiencies.This project will replace two grossly undersized, leased outpatient clinics and eliminate the concerns of the existing seismic deficiencies at the Oakland OPC. The move from leases to owned capital assets in appropriately sized space will avoid the $1.34 million in annual lease expense and reducing $1 million in annual fee expenditures. Significant savings and efficiencies will be achieved with a single site._______________________________________________________________________________________ 2011 Congressional Submission 2-29

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This project provides burial and benefits access, which provides more access to veterans closer to where they reside. The FY 2011 budget reflects new burial policies that include an “urban initiative” to improve NCA service in certain densely-populated areas where the existing national cemetery is distant from the urban core (for a detailed description of the new policies, see National Cemetery Administration Construction Program, 1C-3 – 1C-5). This columbarium expansion will satisfy the urban initiative in the San Francisco/Oakland/San Jose area.

Finally, this project supports the VA/DoD Joint Strategic Planning goals by embedding DoD primary care staff and creating a jointly staffed Ambulatory Surgical Center, which is a new service not offered at the current clinics. It allows the VA and the US Air Force to meet the unmet demands of veteran clients, military active duty, US Coast Guard active duty and Tricare Beneficiaries in the Northern Alameda market.

V. Strategic Goals and Objectives

One VA: Promote excellence in business practices through administrative, financial and clinical efficiencies. Recruit, develop, and retain a competent, committed, and diverse workforce that provides high quality service to Veterans and their families. Colocating the VHA Outpatient Clinic, the NCA Columbaria and VBA support meets the goals of One VA to ensure the most efficient facility for the Veteran.

Quality Of Life: Maximize the physical, mental, and social functions of Veterans with disabilities and to be recognized as a leader in the provision of specialized health care services. Construction of a state-of-the-art, right-sized OPC with a proper functional layout and adjacencies will improve access to world class VA healthcare, meet the needs of our Veteran clientele and improve customer satisfaction.

Honor And Memorialize: Provide high quality, reliable, accessible, timely and efficient health care that maximizes the health and functional status for all enrolled Veterans, with special focus on Veterans with service-connected disabilities, those unable to defray the cost, and those statutorily eligible for care. Collocating Mental Health with

Primary Care, providing expanded Medical and Surgical Specialty Care, expanded Diagnostic and Ancillary services and the opportunity to provide an Ambulatory Surgical Center will do more to decrease the disparity of care for low income minority Veterans who are the largest users of the existing Oakland VA clinics. In addition, the Columbaria will allow us to appropriately memorialize Veterans who have served this Nation with honor in a location closer to the families of the Veteran.

Public Health & Socioeconomic Well-Being: Advance medical research and academics, and develop programs that address Veterans' needs with an emphasis on service- connected injuries and illnesses and contribute to the Nation's knowledge of disease and disability. The V A Northern California Healthcare System (VANCHCS) has academic affiliations with the University of California at Davis and local institutions of higher education. Furthermore, VANCHCS has partnerships with the Oakland Tribal Health Center, the U.S. Army Reserve units and U.S. Coast Guard units, and a U.S. Air Force Joint Venture partnership with the 60th

Medical Group, David Grant Medical Center. Finally, VANCHCS has community partnerships with Contra Costa Regional Medical Center and Alameda Hospital for acute and subacute inpatient services. All of these affiliations continue to promote medical research and educational opportunities, the smooth transition from active duty to Veteran care, and promote the healthcare needs of Veterans with service-connected disabilities in the Alameda market.

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VI. Alternatives to Construction Considered

Alternative 1 - Status Quo: Maintain two grossly undersized leased VHA medical clinics in Oakland, a leased trailer and leased parking with no means of providing access for NCA Columbaria, VBA benefit support or VA/DoD Joint Venture clinics. The lack of meeting access in this option makes it one of the least preferred alternatives.

Alternative 2 – Construct New – Alameda Point BRAC Site (Preferred Alternative): This option constructs a new OPC, a new Columbarium, administrative support space for NCA and VBA, all associated parking, and a VA/DoD Ambulatory Surgical Center on the Alameda Point BRAC property. This option creates significant efficiencies by ensuring a continuum of care for patients in a single facility, reduces patient and staff travel between the two sites, avoids and reduces operating expenses by eliminating leases and providing services in-house. This new VA campus will provide to the Veteran a state-of-the-art, right-sized OPC, new Columbaria for families closer to where they reside, and VBA benefits support. By combining all the tangible and intangible benefits, this is the most cost effective alternative.

Alternative 3 - Construct New – Newly Acquired Land: This option allows for the construction of a state-of-the-art, right-sized OPC in a single location, allowing an elimination of two leased clinics and an Ambulatory Surgery Center. However, it does not allow for the construction of a Columbaria or the collocation of VBA due to a lack of land availability. Based on a market analysis of real estate for this option, the Alameda area does not have available parcels of land large enough for One-VA acreage needed to accommodate the needed access points. However, in the event the Alameda Point BRAC transfer fails to occur, this option is VA’s next best option for this project to at least meet the healthcare access needs of the Alameda area.

Alternative 4 – Contract Out: This option contracts the current two OPC services to the community. This is the most costly option due to the specialty services provided. In addition, this does not allow for the collocation of a NCA Columbaria, VBA contingent assets nor VA/DoD Joint Venture Clinics. Therefore, this option is the least preferred.

VII. Affiliations/Sharing Agreements/Memoranda of Understanding

VANCHCS has medical school affiliations with University of California at Davis, School of Medicine along with over 100 affiliation agreements with other institutions of higher education. It also has DoD sharing agreement with the 60th Medical Group David Grant Medical Center (DGMC), Travis AFB.

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X. Project Cost Summary

New construction (148,122 gross square feet).............................................$61,433,000Subtotal ............................................................................................................$61,433,000

Pre-design development allowance .............................................................$12,290,000 Total Other Costs (Utilities, etc.).................................................................. $61,464,000 Subtotal estimated base construction costs ............................................$135,187,000Construction contingency ................................................................................$8,848,000 Technical services........................................................................................... $17,698,000 Construction management costs.....................................................................$5,309,000 Site acquisition costs.......................................................................................................$0 Subtotal estimated base cost......................................................................$167,042,000Inflation allowance to construction award..................................................$41,558,000Total estimated project cost*......................................................................$208,600,000

Link to complete VA 2011 Proposed Budget http://www4.va.gov/budget/docs/summary/Fy2011_Volume_4-Construction_and_5_Year_Cap_Plan.pdf

Alameda Point is at 2-29 and includes $10 million payroll projection for clinic, but no payroll projections for other services.

~Photo Credit - all photos: AlamedaPointInfo.com~