Northwoods Reporter

The VA Minneapolis Health Care System, subsidiary 618GH in Hayward, Wisconsin, scheduled 310 pending appointments during the period ending December 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 304 had a wait time of 30 days or less (98.1%) and six appointments (1.9%) 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
618	Minneapolis	52,636	44,290	8,346
618BY	Superior	6,608	5,662	946
618GI	Ramsey	5,314	4,239	1,075
618GE	Chippewa Falls	2,724	2,556	168
618GD	Maplewood	2,547	2,190	357
618GG	Rochester	1,997	1,962	35
618GN	Mankato	1,512	1,436	76
618GM	Rice Lake	1,036	934	102
618GJ	Shakopee	969	930	39
618GB	Hibbing	750	701	49
618GA	St. James	574	523	51
618GK	Albert Lea	546	538	8
618GH	Hayward	310	304	6
618GL	Minneapolis	182	182	0
618QB	Ely	139	123	16
618QA	Fort Snelling	52	52	0

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration