VA chief promises reform in El Paso visit

Acting Veterans Affairs Secretary Sloan Gibson has met with VA medical center officials in El Paso and vowed to improve veterans’ access to health care.

Gibson met Friday with the VA center’s leadership, employees and U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke to hear about lingering problems in providing care.

Gibson says the facility will receive an additional $5 million to facilitate access to doctors outside the VA. He also promised that VA officials will be accountable for past and future wrongdoings.

The secretary has taken the reins of a VA system rocked by a scandal showing records were falsified to hide months-long wait times for veterans to see a doctor. A VA audit showed facilities in El Paso and elsewhere in Texas had some of the longest wait times for medical appointments.