Sumter Times

The North Florida/South Georgia VA Health Care System reported that 15 patients newly enrolled in its benefits program requested appointments but had not received one during the period ending March 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

During that same time frame, the system scheduled 268,673 pending appointments across its 24 healthcare facilities.

A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) in January 2019 reported that wait times for new appointments at VA health care facilities were similar or better to wait times at private-sector providers between 2014 and 2017.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO), however, released a report in July 2019 that cautioned that the VA’s data-tracking system only captures part of the appointment process and fails to account for the time that it takes the VA to enroll veterans in its health benefits program.

At a hearing before the House Veterans Affairs Committee after the report was released, Debra Draper, health care director at the GAO, said new patients may actually wait up to 70 days for an appointment when they first enroll for benefits.

The VA explains on its website that when veterans apply for benefits, they are assigned to 1 of 8 priority groups, with those who need immediate care due to service-related disabilities placed in higher priority groups. Veterans who don’t have service-connected disabilities and who earn a higher income are placed in the lower priority groups.

Location	Total Appointments Scheduled	Appointments Scheduled 30 Days or Less	Appointments Scheduled More than 30 Days
Gainesville, FL (Malcom Randall)	59,994	55,307	4,687
Lake City, FL	17,283	15,860	1,423
Jacksonville 1, FL	43,292	38,031	5,261
Valdosta, GA	4,950	4,780	170
Ocala, FL	10,102	9,658	444
Saint Augustine, FL	9,620	9,369	251
Tallahassee, FL (Sergeant Ernest I. Boots Thomas)	28,059	26,757	1,302
Lecanto, FL	2	2	0
The Villages, FL	30,905	29,363	1,542
St. Marys, GA	3,943	3,810	133
Marianna, FL	3,050	3,033	17
Palatka, FL	3,375	3,328	47
Waycross, GA	3,240	3,194	46
Perry, FL	626	623	3
Gainesville 1-16th Street, FL	81	81	0
Gainesville 2-98th Street, FL	1,186	1,121	65
Gainesville 3-64th Street (C), FL	1,632	1,058	574
Gainesville 4-64th Street (O), FL	7,129	6,938	191
Gainesville 5-64th Street (D), FL	4,766	4,583	183
Gainesville 6-23rd Avenue, FL	35	23	12
Jacksonville Southpoint, FL	14,128	13,107	1,021
Ocala West, FL	5,198	4,741	457
Jacksonville 2, FL	11,587	11,160	427
Lake City Commerce Drive, FL	4,490	4,485	5

Source: U.S. Veteran’s Administration