[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 126 (Wednesday, September 9, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Page S9178]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE SAN FRANCISCO VA MEDICAL CENTER

 Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I ask my colleagues to join me 
today in honoring the San Francisco VA Medical Center, SFVAMC, on the 
occasion of its 75th anniversary. Since its official dedication on 
November 11, 1934, the SFVAMC has been honoring America's veterans by 
providing them with accessible, quality health care. Today the center 
provides state-of-the-art medical, neurological, surgical, and 
psychiatric care for the more than 310,000 veterans living in northern 
California.
  Were it not for the leadership and persistence of Congresswoman 
Florence P. Kahn, the SFVAMC might never have come to be. Congresswoman 
Kahn was the first Jewish woman to serve in the U.S. Congress, and the 
fifth woman ever to serve in Congress. She was also the first woman to 
serve on the House Military Affairs Committee. In 1930, Congresswoman 
Kahn made an appeal to the Federal Board of Hospitalization--the 
precursor to the Veterans Administration--to build a veterans hospital 
in San Francisco. At the time, the only facility for veterans in 
California was in Los Angeles. Congresswoman Kahn recognized that 
veterans in the northern part of the state were in dire need of 
services, and worked tirelessly to garner support for building a 
medical center in San Francisco. I would like to acknowledge and honor 
the work of Congresswoman Kahn, as her efforts have ultimately improved 
the lives of countless American veterans.
  Today the SFVAMC serves veterans in Marin, Napa, Sonoma, Lake, 
Mendocino, Humboldt, San Mateo, and San Francisco counties. The center 
operates five community-based outpatient clinics that provide primary 
and mental health care. These clinics offer a variety of services, 
including those that place veterans in supportive housing, provide case 
management, and offer individual and vocational counseling.
  In addition to providing direct care, the SFVAMC hosts some of the 
largest funded research programs in the Veterans Health Administration. 
The Center for Imaging of Neurodegenerative Diseases, for example, 
works to develop treatments to prevent the development and slow the 
progression of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's, 
Parkinson's, vascular dementia, post traumatic stress disorder, gulf 
war illness, depression, and other conditions associated with nerve 
loss in the brain.
  Thanks to the Center for Imaging Neurodegenerative Diseases, the 
SFVAMC's three Medical Science Research Enhancement Award Programs, and 
partners such as the Veterans Health Research Institute, the SFVAMC is 
at the forefront of medical research and is working to extend and 
improve the lives of veterans across the country.
  I applaud the staff and volunteers at the SFVAMC for the tremendous 
service they have provided to our veterans since 1934, and offer my 
best wishes for many more successful years of delivering care and 
advancing medical research. Please join me in celebrating the 75th 
Anniversary of the SFVAMC.

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