NE Oklahoma News

The VA of the Ozarks Health Care System, subsidiary 564GE in Jay, Oklahoma, scheduled 1,097 pending appointments during the period ending November 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 1,064 had a wait time of 30 days or less (97%) and 33 appointments (3%) were scheduled more than 30 days out.

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 to or better than 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.

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

Facility Code	Location	Total Appointments Scheduled	Appointments Scheduled 30 Days or Less	Appointments Scheduled More than 30 Days
564	Fayetteville	23,788	21,969	1,819
564BY	Springfield	21,842	20,762	1,080
564GC	Branson	6,697	6,373	324
564GF	Joplin	3,172	3,003	169
564GB	Fort Smith	2,880	2,709	171
564GA	Harrison	1,584	1,573	11
564GE	Jay	1,097	1,064	33
564GD	Ozark	507	482	25
564QB	Sunbridge	367	255	112
564QA	Township	1	0	1

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration