Pittsburgh VA restarts town hall tour, including stop in Jeannette

The Veterans Affairs Pittsburgh Healthcare System has revived a town hall tour in Western Pennsylvania and Eastern Ohio after abruptly canceling it last month.

The tour has four stops where veterans can get information on their benefits, enroll in coverage and hear directly from leadership at the Pittsburgh VA:

• Sept. 5 at Ohio Valley Mall in St. Clairsville, Ohio

• Sept. 12 at American Legion Post 641 in Baden, Beaver County

• Sept. 15 at American Legion Post 344 in Jeannette

• Sept. 29 and American Veterans Post 103 in Hopwood, Fayette County

Representatives from the Veterans Benefits Administration and the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies will also be in attendance.

Each event includes a resource fair starting at 1 p.m., followed by a town hall at 2 p.m.

The tour as originally scheduled made only one stop, in Washington, on July 22. Two days later, the system called off the rest of the series without explanation.

U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio, D-Fox Chapel, sent a letter to VA Secretary Doug Collins shortly after demanding to know why the tour was cancelled. According to Deluzio’s office, Collins did not reply ahead of the Aug. 22 deadline, even after granting the VA a two-week extension.

Donald Koenig, then-director of the Pittsburgh VA, led the Washington town hall. He has since been reassigned within the wider care network covering Pennsylvania and several other states, with deputy director Prachi Asher taking over as acting director.

Asher will lead the upcoming town halls, according to Pittsburgh VA spokeswoman Shelley Nulph.

Another letter from Deluzio — a former Navy officer — seeking justification for the leadership change has also gone unanswered, despite an Aug. 21 deadline, his office said.

The Pittsburgh VA covers 13 counties and served more than 94,000 veterans last year. It has more than 4,000 employees, even as it whittles down its workforce under Collins’ direction.