President Donald Trump departs after a press briefing with the coronavirus task force, at the White House, Wednesday, March 18, 2020, in Washington, with Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie, Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Seema Verma and Dr. Deborah Birx, White House coronavirus response coordinator. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
March 19, 2020
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March 19, 2020 1:57 p.m.
As virus spreads, VA gets set to back up taxed US hospitals
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Department of Veterans Affairs is bracing for a potential surge of 1 million veterans infected by coronavirus and at the same time is preparing for the possibility it may have to absorb overflow civilian patients if private hospitals are overrun by the pandemic.