WASHINGTON – Taking an important step to ensure that veterans in San Francisco receive care in a safe, comfortable, state-of-the-art facility, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is targeting more than $35 million dollars for major improvements to the San Francisco VA Medical Center.
"The San Francisco Bay Area has experienced major earthquakes throughout the years, and it is our responsibility to provide a safe and secure environment for medical care," said the Honorable R. James Nicholson, Secretary of Veterans Affairs. "The seismic retrofit of the San Francisco medical center will give our veterans and our employees the safety and security they deserve."
The $35,375,000 contract awarded to S.J. Amoroso Construction Co., Inc. calls for complete seismic retrofitting of the main five-story inpatient building and will also include improvements for patient privacy, disabled accessibility and utility upgrades. Construction is expected to be completed in August 2009.
"The San Francisco VA Medical Center receives well over 1,000 outpatient visits a day, offers superior specialized care in many areas, and is a leading research center," said Dr. Jonathan B. Perlin, VA's under secretary for health. "These improvements will ensure that the facility will continue to provide veterans with safe, effective, efficient and compassionate health care for many years to come."
In fiscal year 2005, VA spent nearly $6 billion in California to serve more than 2.2 million veterans. In Northern California, VA operates major medical centers in Fresno, Martinez, Livermore, Menlo Park, Sacramento, Palo Alto and San Francisco.
