It is astounding the degree to which we continue to let down those who were willing to give their lives for us through service in the military. Here in West Virginia, it is a pattern at our Veterans Administration medical centers. An audit has revealed that a second facility has been found to have problematic personnel review procedures.

Recall the first one was the Louis A. Johnson VA Medical Center in Clarksburg, where they failed to complete a timely background check of a former nursing assistant who admitted to killing seven veterans at the hospital with injections of insulin.

A new report from the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General says it also found inadequate background checks at the Beckley VA Medical Center.

In some cases, suitability checks were not initiated, and some were not fingerprinted, the report said. In other cases, background investigations were discontinued in error or not completed in the required timeframe, according to the report. There was no evidence of patient harm from the issues.

That is a relief, at least. But the possibility for harm existed because of negligence on the part of administrators. That is unconscionable.

For now, the VA Administration has agreed to an audit of background investigations for Beckley personnel, establishing a plan to conduct compliance checks at other facilities, and evaluating and allocating staff as needed. Veterans should have been able to expect such meticulous care in hiring and staffing to begin with.

Given the pattern here — and perhaps in other states as well — federal officials must not ease up in their oversight of these vital facilities. We promised these men and women we would take care of them. It’s high time we took that promise seriously.