Many changes have been brought along with the new year at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs building located here in Lake Nona. The new year has brought big changes to the board as well as management of the VA medical center in Medical City. Mr. Timothy J. Cooke has recently been appointed as the new director of the V.A. Cooke previously served as director of the Martinsburg VA Medical Center in Martinsburg, Virginia, and has over 30 years of experience in Veterans Affairs.

The outlook for Cooke’s presence at the VA is highly anticipated. “With a strong sense of governance structure and ability to focus on customer experience, I am certain Mr. Cooke will be an asset to our VISN, our employees and volunteers, our health care partners, the community, and, most importantly, to the Veterans we are honored to serve,” said Dr. Miguel LaPuz, Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) 8 network director. 

In addition to the management changes, a contract has been awarded to Optum Public Sector Solutions to manage the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs going forward in order to improve care for veterans here in the area.

VA Secretary Robert L. Wilkie said, “The new Community Care Network (CCN) contract awards reflect our ongoing commitment to increasing veterans’ access to care and were designed based on feedback from veterans and other stakeholders.”  

It should be noted that the VA was previously managed by TriWest Healthcare Alliance, and community providers contracted by TriWest should be sure to sign up with Optum to continue to provide service to veterans under CCN as they will not be automatically enrolled.