Reported by Scott Harris

ORLANDO -- A new Veterans Affairs hospital will open in Central Florida in 2012.

On Tuesday, the Veterans Affairs Committee met with several local lawmakers about progress on the new facility being built at Lake Nona.

The effort to secure the facility has been under way since the 1980s.

Committee members said their focus is on making sure the facility has the latest technology and partners with local groups, in addition to others who are building nearby, including Burnham and Nemours.

"It's wonderful that we're building the hospital, but the point is that we still need to partner with different organizations and groups so we can expand the services. And this is kind of different from the mentality of the VA, so we as members of Congress need to push to make sure this happens," said Rep. Corrine Brown.

Republicans Bill Posey of Rockledge and Ginny Brown-Waite of Brooksville, and Democrats Suzanne Kosmas of New Smyrna Beach and Alan Grayson of Orlando also took part in the hearing.

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