American Samoa's Congresswoman Aumua Amata Radewagen has won a personal commitment from the US Secretary of Veterans Affairs to sit down and address local veterans needs directly.
Aumua, a member of the House Committee on Veterans, told Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert McDonald that American Samoa's veterans are not getting the benefits they're entitled to.
"Our veterans who make up 10 percent of our entire population have issues that are basic, comparatively small but they are generally taken for granted here in the States, in a nutshell, they need a cemetery, we have no MAC flights, we need access to better health care, our local hospital has no cat scan, no cancer specialist, so our veterans must always seek care off island."
Aumua added that local veterans also have difficulty getting their medical records to even apply for benefits.
The Veterans Affairs Secretary said he wanted to sit down with the Congresswoman to discuss her concerns.
