Opinion: No such thing as non-essential workers at Veterans Affairs - Gainesville Times

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Opinion: No such thing as non-essential workers at Veterans Affairs

Bill Nelson looks at graphs that were handed out Friday at an oversight field hearing held by The Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs at the University of North Georgia’s Gainesville campus in Gainesville. The graph refers to the number of veterans who rely on Veteran Affairs health care. - photo by Erin O. Smith

0822VETERAN 0008 — Bill Nelson looks at graphs that were handed out Friday at an oversight field hearing held by The Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs at the University of North Georgia’s Gainesville campus in Gainesville. The graph refers to the number of veterans who rely on Veteran Affairs health care. - photo by Erin O. Smith

Georgia has the ninth-largest veteran population, with over 40,000 residing within Congressional District 9 and approximately 9,500 of those veterans calling Hall County home. More concerning is the fact that Georgia is among the top five states that have the highest backlog on claims.