New Veterans Affairs Clinic opens in Idaho Falls

Local Veterans will now have access to healthcare services with the new state of the art Veterans Affairs Outreach Clinic in Idaho Falls located on the east side of Idaho Falls.

Officials from around the Southeastern Idaho region and the Veterans Assistance Center in Idaho falls held a ribbon cutting Thursday morning to commemorate the celebration.

“This unique approach to caring for veterans focuses on greater access”, said Salt Lake City Veterans Affairs Director Sehlla Stovall. “It takes seamless coordination to ensure the whole health of our veterans.”

The 5,679 square foot facility is of 1,400 community-based outpatient clinics around the country. Idaho Falls is the second city behind Pocatello to get an un-updated clinic.

Assistant Chief of Primary Care Dr. Jeremy Timm says the center will fill a void that was needed for 1200 veterans.

“It’s very exciting to be able to take care of this many more veterans than we were before.

Aside from primary care, the biggest step forward in Idaho Falls is going to be the integration of primary care with mental health services.

“This is a new service for Idaho Falls that will allow our Veterans to get timely mental health care right here in this clinic rather than having to either travel down to Salt Lake City or wait and do it telemedicine,” said Dr. Timm.

Veterans can receive help assistance with combat-related conditions, such as post-traumatic stress disorder.

Patients were already reporting for appointments during the open house ceremony.

“You also took an oath and said you would take care of yourself and be prepared to serve, right?, Air Force Veteran Leroy Duenes said during Thursday’s ribbon cutting.

“It’s an honor that they would care that much about me. They spent all this money and they built this fantastic clinic and got the best people they can to come and care about me.”

The clinic is located at 640 S. Woodruff Avenue in Idaho Falls.