Nature Coast Times

The North Florida/South Georgia VA Health Care System Florida scheduled 205,881 pending appointments across its locations during the period ending April 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments 193,407 had a wait time of 30 days or less (93.94%) and 12,474 appointments (6.06%) 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
Gainesville, FL (Malcom Randall)	44,503	40,621	3,882
Lake City, FL	12,445	11,423	1,022
Jacksonville 1, FL	32,614	29,396	3,218
Valdosta, GA	4,622	4,552	70
Ocala, FL	9,214	8,912	302
Saint Augustine, FL	7,798	7,654	144
Tallahassee, FL (Sergeant Ernest I. "Boots" Thomas)	19,724	19,003	721
Lecanto, FL	1	1	0
The Villages, FL	22,889	21,982	907
St. Marys, GA	3,549	3,463	86
Marianna, FL	2,663	2,652	11
Palatka, FL	2,899	2,886	13
Waycross, GA	2,834	2,803	31
Perry, FL	509	509	0
Gainesville 1-16th Street, FL	78	78	0
Gainesville 2-98th Street, FL	517	488	29
Gainesville 3-64th Street (C), FL	444	140	304
Gainesville 4-64th Street (O), FL	4,861	4,717	144
Gainesville 5-64th Street (D), FL	3,514	3,423	91
Gainesville 6-23rd Avenue, FL	22	8	14
Jacksonville Southpoint, FL	11,963	11,303	660
Ocala West, FL	3,711	3,499	212
Jacksonville 2, FL	10,787	10,185	602
Lake City Commerce Drive, FL	3,720	3,709	11