Department leaders brought in more than 54,000 new employees in 11 months, pushing worker levels to their highest mark ever.
"Severe" staffing shortages persist in areas such as psychiatry, nursing, and medical officers, despite the VA making progress in filling vacancies.
Tens of thousands of staffers either have not started the vaccine regiment yet or have not filed paperwork showing their vaccine status.
Some medical center employees had been receiving only one mask a week to protect against infection.
