The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has maintained an increasing supply of beds and supplies at facilities across the country to treat veterans and COVID-19 patients, according to a press release.

“VA’s team has managed its resources wisely during this crisis,” VA Secretary Robert Wilkie said. “By deferring elective surgeries, the department opened ample space for COVID-19 patients and has been able to serve its ‘Fourth Mission’ of caring for all Americans during this crisis.” 

As of late April, VA had the capacity to take in 12,215 critical and non-critical patients, it said. A month earlier, that number was just shy of 10,000.

About 2,200 VA employees had tested positive for the coronavirus by late April. VA has hired an additional 9,338 new medical staff members and expects to add thousands more staff members in the coming weeks.

Photo by T. T. Parish