Cortez Masto’s virtual tour comes to Nye, Esmeralda

U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto on Monday, Aug. 31 wrapped up the sixth day of her Virtual Nevada Tour 2020 with stops at Nye and Esmeralda counties.

The senator began her day by attending a virtual briefing to learn more about the Gemfield Resources Project, a new gold mining operation in Goldfield. The Gemfield Project will employ 200 workers during construction and 150 employees during the 12-year life of the mine, which is owned by Nevada-based Gemfield Resources, Ltd.

The briefing was followed by a virtual roundtable discussion with veterans from the Pahrump community on their telehealth experience with the VA during the pandemic and the challenges presented in delivering optimal care in rural communities.

At the virtual roundtable, Cortez Masto was joined by Dr. Leslie Sarna, VIMPACT primary care physician, San Francisco VA Healthcare System; Dr. Lowryanne Vick, telehealth program manager, VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System; Dr. Maia Carter, chief of primary care, VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System; and Tim Jobin, associate chief of staff for mental health, VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System.

The VA Pahrump Community-Based Outpatient Clinic has 2,395 enrolled patients with 9,408 outpatient visits made during Fiscal Year 2020, as of Aug. 18. Similar to primary care clinics, the Pahrump CBOC has a patient-aligned care team with a primary care provider, nurse, social worker and administrative staff, telehealth, laboratory services and mental health services.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, the VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System has prioritized transitioning available appointments for health care and mental health to virtual and telephone. VASNHS increased virtual appointments from 14% to 42% from February to July.

“Nevada is proud to have a large veteran community presence,” Cortez Masto said. “They are our neighbors, co-workers, friends, family and more. They have given so much in service to this country, and we must ensure that they have access to the proper health care and mental health treatment they need.

“I hosted this roundtable discussion to hear directly from health care experts and veterans about the benefits of telehealth and the challenges presented by COVID-19. As more veteran health care centers transition medical appointments to virtual visits and telephone, I’m committed to getting our veterans the quality health care they deserve.”

Cortez Masto also held meetings with Nye and Esmeralda county officials on a wide range of issues from COVID-19 to transportation.

“From Pahrump to Silver Peak and every city in between, I enjoyed the opportunity to hear directly from Nevadans in Nye and Esmeralda counties about the issues most important to them,” Cortez Masto said. “Today’s conversations make it clear that the COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect the lives of thousands of Nevadans across the state, especially working class families in rural communities. We see it in the increase in virtual health care visits for veterans in the Pahrump community to the way businesses like Gemfield Resources are conducting their day-to-day work.

“I remain committed to working in Congress to bring much-needed federal resources to communities like those in Nye and Esmeralda counties and across the Silver State.”

Cortez Masto is participating in a virtual tour of all of Nevada’s 17 counties as part of her Virtual Nevada Tour 2020. Sunday’s visit included stops at Churchill and Mineral counties.