BILOXI, Miss. – The Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System (GCVHCS) will begin the resumption of in-person Veteran health care services starting Monday, June 22, at the Biloxi and Pensacola locations. The phased resumption of services will be done to ensure the safety of Veterans, visitors, and staff.  
   The first phase of this move will begin with some primary care and behavioral health teams. This includes pathology and laboratory, imaging, surgery, dental, specialty medicine, and several others. GCVHCS anticipates slowly increasing available face-to-face capacity over the next several months. Factors affecting further increases will include local COVID-19 cases and hospitalization rates.
   GCVHCS Director Bryan Matthews said the concerted efforts of the organization’s nearly 2,600 employees at five sites have been critical in developing this first phase. He assured that GCVHCS would resume services following appropriate safety considerations and Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendations.
   “The GCVHCS team has been working to make sure that we’re ready to expand services for our Veterans,” said Matthews. “We’ve leveraged technology to ensure continuity of care during this unprecedented global health crisis, and the preparations we’ve made will allow us to verify how COVID-19 is impacting our Veterans and GCVHCS operations.”
   Phase One is the first of several phases. Each phase will add additional capacity and services while continuing prior practices. Timing will be largely dependent upon local factors and CDC recommendations. As the process continues, GCVHCS will closely monitor all aspects of the delivery of care to ensure a safe environment is maintained for Veterans, staff, and visitors. 
   Current screening procedures will continue at facility entrances. Other precautions include staggered appointment times, physical distancing, universal masking, a restricted visitor policy, and robust cleaning measures.
   “We’ve managed to keep the number of positive cases at a very low number in our areas,” Matthews said. “This is indicative of the dedication and commitment of the entire staff, and their efforts in continuing to provide the best health care to our nation’s Veterans.”
   If you are a Veteran patient with questions, please call 1-800-929-7690.
   The Biloxi, Mobile, Pensacola, Eglin, and Panama City facilities are all part of the GCVHCS. GCVHCS is headquartered in Biloxi, Mississippi, and provides health care services to more than 70,000 Veterans.

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