Rome Reporter

The VA Atlanta Health Care System Georgia scheduled 216,874 pending appointments across its locations during the period ending January 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments 201,820 had a wait time of 30 days or less (93.06%) and 15,054 appointments (6.94%) were scheduled more than 30 days out.

A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) in January 2019 reported 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 cautioning 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.

Debra Draper, health care director at the GAO, told the House Veterans Affairs Committee new patients may actually wait up to 70 days for an appointment when they first enroll for benefits.

The VA explains 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 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
Atlanta, GA	86,847	79,639	7,208
Fort McPherson, GA	19,835	18,434	1,401
Oakwood, GA	11,254	10,942	312
Austell, GA	4,237	4,217	20
Stockbridge, GA	9,483	9,400	83
Lawrenceville, GA	10,911	10,766	145
Newnan, GA	7,404	7,342	62
Blairsville, GA	3,873	3,804	69
Carrollton, GA (Trinka Davis Village)	8,958	8,194	764
Rome, GA	3,216	3,187	29
Northeast Cobb County, GA	3,677	3,570	107
East Point, GA	542	512	30
Henderson Mill, GA	1,972	1,959	13
Fulton County, GA	107	100	7
Gwinnett County, GA	4,504	4,456	48
Atlanta North Arcadia Avenue, GA	39,481	34,728	4,753