Mercer Republicans United’s Commissioner Candidates Call for
Transportation Improvements and Transparency for Mercer County’s Veterans

The veterans community has often felt neglected in Mercer County and it is not uncommon to hear stories about the Veterans Administration’s lack of treatment to our heroes. Currently, there is a major problem affecting many of our veterans and some do not feel that they have a voice in County government affairs.

The current transportation system and physical access provided to local veterans visiting Veterans Administration clinics in Mercer County is becoming more important each day. While our Commissioner candidate team has been campaigning, these young candidates heard complaints about buses not dropping off veterans closer to the clinics’ entry doors.  One veteran specifically suggested that bus lanes need to be shortened and drop-offs closer to the clinics. Commissioner candidate Joseph Stillwell stated, “We must improve the conditions by which our veterans can access our local Veterans facilities by bus as many do not drive. This should be an easy fix to make, but it isn’t happening. Specifically, our Vietnam Veteran community is aging and they require and deserve a better avenue of reaching a place they depend on for health care services.”

In addition, Commissioner candidates Joseph Stillwell, Volodomyr Michel Hurtado are calling for the complete accountability of these VA employees by advocating for more transparency and a clear investigation process for veteran complaints. Mercer County’s Veterans Services office currently does not provide this service. Commissioner candidate, Volodymyr Machevus said, “Our County government needs to take a lead in solving such problems. There are stories from those who attend these facilities that the workers have a lack of attentiveness about our veteran’s living conditions and that is the opposite of the premise of the Department of Veterans Affairs’ mission to help our veterans.”

Throughout the course of the Covid-19 pandemic, the VA’s workforce was stationed at home and this action harmed the opportunity for veterans to receive care. Stillwell and Machevus’ colleague, Michel Hurtado added, “Employees of these VA facilities must return to work in person, we owe it to our veterans to maintain an accountable and efficient VA workforce. Mercer County must play a big role in making sure that our Federal government does not shirk on its responsibility to those who served in our Armed Forces.”

The three Commissioner candidates are also calling for Mercer County’s government and Mercer County Executive Brian Hughes to announce a plan to invest residents’ tax dollars in signage throughout our county which advertises what care veterans can receive by this coming Fourth of July. Many veterans do not know they can hold the government accountable or even how to do so should they need to. As an example, veterans who are going to veteran’s government health facilities ought to know how they can report negligence by any employee involved in their care. Advertising signage should be placed on billboards, sides of buses, and in the newspapers/websites to reach veterans and their families or support networks.

Mercer County’s veteran community deserves representation that will hear their concerns and provide practical solutions to solve their issues. In this election, it is clear that Mercer County’s current Commissioner Board will not address this issue, but the Mercer Republicans United slate of Commissioners will help solve these veterans’ issues when they are elected in November.