El Paso’s new health director reviews past allegations and outlines city priorities

EL PASO, Texas (KFOX14/CBS4) — It’s been about two months since El Paso’s new public health director assumed his new position. In an interview with KFOX14, he discussed his transition, the city’s priorities and responded to allegations from former employees.

Dr. Verinder Taneja was named El Paso’s health director in June. The city was led by Dr. Hector Ocaranza, who has been serving as interim since 2022.

Dr. Taneja’s appointment sparked some controversy when it was revealed that at least 16 Tarrant County employees in Fort Worth, Texas, said he created a toxic and hostile work environment.

“A lot of these things were investigated by HR. You know, it’s usually a general complaint: ‘Oh, the environment is bad,’ and so on,” Taneja said. “Nothing came of these investigations, even the HR report said there were no rules that were broken.”

Dr. Taneja said he believes he has successfully handled disease outbreaks in Tarrant County, including Zika, Ebola and COVID-19.

He remained in Fort Worth for nine and a half years and then retired.

“This was around the time of COVID, so there was a lot of dissatisfaction in public health in general just because of the stress,” he said. “You know, in a lot of places, post-COVID, there was a need for change and here we are.”

CONNECTED:El Paso Names Verinder Taneja New Public Health Director

In El Paso, Taneja said he is ready to move forward and address health issues in the community.

“Like many places, chronic disease, obesity, diabetes, blood pressure are on the rise,” Taneja said.

“So, I want to make sure that I support my team with education and technology. All the tools they need to provide these fantastic services to our community,” Taneja said.

He said a border city like El Paso presents a unique challenge.

“The assignment in the border town is a first for me, I learn a lot about the culture and how everything is intertwined. Most places are strictly jurisdictional, but El Paso is a large and unique community,” Taneja said.

He focused on vaccines, saying one of the reasons some diseases come back after many years is because vaccination rates are declining.

The city is currently working to provide thousands of free vaccines to the public through the Be POWERflu campaign.

CONNECTED:El Paso’s new health director faces scrutiny over past allegations of toxic work environment