— Senator Kay Hagan promised immediate action Monday for veterans during a visit to the Fayetteville VA Medical Center.

"After talking with Fayetteville VAMC staff and leadership, I believe there are some additional steps we can take immediately, including expediting the process for leasing additional space to accommodate veterans and examining more ways to ensure enough medical personnel are on hand to administer care," Hagan said.

Hagan, a Democrat, has family ties to the military and has made military issues a key component of her constituent service.

After a national audit of VA hospitals found that patients at the Fayetteville center wait longer than the average for appointments, she asked Acting Secretary of Veterans Affairs Sloan Gibson to visit the hospital. He pledged $7.4 million in federal money to address the long wait times and ordered the hospital to hire temporary staff to deal with the backlog.

Hagan praised his support but said the VA has a long way to go. "Much remains to be done to restore the trust and faith of our veterans," she said.