VA Pacific Islands Health Care System clinics closed on Thursday

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — As the nation observes Jan. 9, 2025 as a day of mourning for former President Jimmy Carter, all VA Pacific Islands Health Care System clinics — including in American Samoa — will be closed.

As another year begins, the VA is looking back with immense pride at how much was accomplished in 2024. A new Kona Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) location opened, offering more services in a larger space for Veterans. The new Daniel K. Akaka VA Clinic opened in April 2024, and represents a significant increase in services and access to care for Veterans in the Pacific.

The Guam CBOC annex moved closer to completion, and the American Samoa Clinic remodel was completed. Also opened was a new Center for Pacific Islander Veterans Health (CPIVH), which will lead the way in research into health conditions and factors that affect Pacific Island Veterans health care.

Over 800 new Veterans registered for health care eligibility via the PACT Act, which provided more than 2,000 health services at outreach events, and engaged with Veterans and their families over 67 days of events in 2024.

The first annual Toa Challenge Veteran Games was held in American Samoa, and the second annual Koa Challenge Veteran Games in Oahu. The VA expanded access and added services across the Hawaiian Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas, Guam, and American Samoa. This year, the Department of Veterans Affairs was also authorized through legislation to provide care for Veterans in the Compact of Free Association (COFA) nations, and logistics are being developed for delivering that care.

AMERICAN SAMOA EXPANSION OF SERVICES

VAPIHCS is excited to announce the expansion of its mental health clinic, and the addition of specialty care and laboratory services at the American Samoa Faleomavaega Eni Fa’aua’a Hunkin Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) at the Fiatele Teo Army Reserve Building, in American Samoa. VAPIHCS is working diligently to expand services for Veterans across the Pacific Islands, and this expansion project will help deliver more care directly to Veterans in American Samoa, reducing the need for travel to Oahu and the mainland United States.

BLAST EXPOSURE AND VETERAN HEALTH

VA is launching a new outreach campaign to encourage all eligible Veterans to enroll in VA health care – including approximately 11,910 unenrolled Pacific Veterans who served in Vietnam, the Gulf War, Iraq, and Afghanistan. VA is launching this campaign after reports of concerns from Veterans about health issues – including mental health challenges and thoughts of suicide – potentially related to repeated blasts and head trauma (low-level artillery blasts, IEDs, missile launches, heavy fire, and more). Since the first reporting of these concerns, VA researchers have been urgently studying this matter to learn more about the potential health impacts of blast exposure on Veterans.

While the VA continues to urgently conduct research into the impacts of blast exposure, VA encourages these Veterans – and all eligible Veterans – to apply for VA care today.