Altoona, PA – The James E. Van Zandt VAMC (JEVZ VAMC) announced it has begun infrastructure upgrades to ensure safe and effective patient care.
These projects are part of a record $4.8 billion in nationwide VA spending to modernize, repair and improve department health care facilities in fiscal year 2026 via the Veterans Health Administration’s Non-Recurring Maintenance program.
JEVZ VAMC improvement projects for the first quarter of fiscal year 2026 are:
- Renovate Main Medical Center Acute Care Floor
- Replace Facility Steam System
- Renovate Medical Center for the addition of a Prosthetics Lab
- Complete Primary Care Conversion to Patient Aligned Care Team Model
- Replace Roofing on Main Medical Center
- Electronic Health Records Management System Infrastructure Upgrades
“Improved facilities, equipment and infrastructure mean better care for Veterans, and these funds will enable the Altoona VA to achieve that goal,” said Executive Director Derek Coughenour. “Better care for Veterans is our goal, and these projects will enable us to achieve just that.”
These infrastructure investments are part of a host of important initiatives to improve VA during the second Trump Administration. Since Jan. 20, 2025, VA has:
- Reduced the backlog of Veterans waiting for VA benefits by 63%.
- Eliminated the backlog of Veteran families waiting for VA health care.
- Processed record numbers of disability claims, reaching an all-time fiscal-year high of three million claims processed Sept. 30.
- Opened 33 new health care clinics, expanding access for Vets around the country.
- Offered Veterans more than 1.9 million appointments outside of normal operating hours. These early-morning, evening, and weekend appointments are giving Veterans more timely and convenient options for care.
For more information, contact Rachel Prichard at Rachel.prichard@va.gov or 814-943-8164 ext. 14905.
