CHESAPEAKE, Va. — A new Veterans Affairs outpatient clinic opened Tuesday in Western Branch, bringing expanded health care access to more than 10,000 veterans in South Hampton Roads. The 27,000-square-foot facility includes primary care, mental health services, diagnostic imaging, and the first Veterans Healthcare Administration (VHA) drive-through pharmacy.
The Hampton VA Health Care System cut the ribbon on the Western Branch Community Based Outpatient Clinic at 2508 Chesapeake Square Ring Road. The 27,000-square-foot facility offers primary care, mental health care, social work, nutrition services, integrated primary care and mental health services, diagnostic imaging, phlebotomy, and a drive-through pharmacy — the first of its kind in the Veterans Health Administration.
The clinic is strategically located to reduce travel burdens for veterans in South Hampton Roads who previously had to cross a bridge or tunnel to reach the Hampton VA Medical Center.
Sherwood Brown, a 35-year U.S. Army veteran who lives in Portsmouth, said the new clinic is a welcome change.
"It's great. It's wonderful. I mean, it's just a great atmosphere. We've got a lot of disabled veterans and this is great for the veterans, and closer," Brown said.
Primary care and mental health services are transitioning from the Portsmouth clinic to the new Western Branch location. The clinic will operate regular hours from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., with after-hours care supplemented through community urgent care, emergency departments, and the Hampton VA Medical Center.
Shane Soto, the Hampton VA Health Care System's interim medical center director and a 13-year Air Force veteran, said the facility reflects the VA's commitment to its Access, Choice and Excellence initiative.
"You're gonna have primary care, mental health, you're gonna have social work, nutrition. You will have some integrated services for primary care mental health. You'll have diagnostic imaging, pharmacy as I highlighted, and phlebotomy," Soto said.
Soto said the clinic is currently at 80% staffing occupancy, with roughly 90 team members expected at full operation. The facility is starting with 4 PACT teams and will expand to 6. He said leadership will monitor which departments need to grow or adjust once the clinic is fully operational.
Staffing has been a persistent challenge at other recently opened VA facilities in the region. The VA clinic on Battlefield Boulevard in Chesapeake, which opened in April 2025, still had roughly 200 vacancies as of February 2026, leaving it at only 63% of its full staffing levels, according to VA Secretary Doug Collins. Congressman Bobby Scott and Sen. Tim Kaine criticized that clinic's staffing levels when it opened with about 150 employees.
Watch related coverage: Chesapeake VA Clinic still faces 199 vacancies, VA Secretary tells Congress
Soto said the new Western Branch clinic will also help address veteran wait times.
"Any time we get to open up a new door, it creates more access," Soto said.
The Hampton VA Health Care System ranks 10th in the nation for growth in primary care enrollment. Soto said the clinic will also offer after-hours and Saturday appointments to improve access for new patients.
For veterans who need transportation, the VA is partnering with Uber Health Connect to help schedule rides to and from outpatient appointments. Disabled American Veterans transportation services and the VA's veteran transportation program are also available.
Soto said the Western Branch clinic is not the last expansion planned for the region. He said the VA anticipates opening a new health care center in the South Side Virginia Beach area in 2029.
U.S. Sen. Mark Warner attended the ribbon cutting and praised the new facility, but raised concerns about the impact of federal workforce reductions on VA staffing.
"It's great to have a new facility, but if you don't have a workforce that's able to take advantage of this new facility, then the veterans are not gonna get the care they deserve," Warner said.
Warner said roughly 40,000 people left VA employment last year, and 25,000 open positions were eliminated. He said Hampton alone lost 700 open slots.
"By simply eliminating open slots without a real rationale, that's both bad business practice and it's bad for the veterans," Warner said.
Warner also said the lengthy process of securing leases and funding for VA facilities slows the pace at which new clinics can open, and called on the VA to become more nimble. He noted that Hampton Roads has one of the fastest-growing veteran populations in the country.
Warner said he is working on a new initiative involving AI tools to help veterans — particularly those with PTSD — navigate scheduling, coordinate transportation, and connect with services more efficiently. He said he hopes to announce details within the next 30 to 45 days.
"There's a lot of downside on AI, but this could be one of the real upside potentials," Warner said.
Warner said Virginia has nearly 700,000 veterans and that improving access to timely, quality care remains a priority.
"Veterans and their families have more than earned access to quality, reliable, and timely health care through years of service and sacrifice, but they have faced unnecessary hurdles to getting that care," Warner said.
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