Nature Coast Times

The North Florida/South Georgia VA Health Care System Florida scheduled 264,409 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 244,574 had a wait time of 30 days or less (92.5%) and 19,835 appointments (7.5%) 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)	57,795	52,711	5,084
Lake City, FL	18,402	16,738	1,664
Jacksonville 1, FL	40,945	35,074	5,871
Valdosta, GA	4,469	4,343	126
Ocala, FL	9,904	9,656	248
Saint Augustine, FL	8,714	8,503	211
Tallahassee, FL (Sergeant Ernest I. "Boots" Thomas)	25,211	24,226	985
Lecanto, FL	8,727	8,721	6
The Villages, FL	29,191	27,485	1,706
St. Marys, GA	4,881	4,567	314
Marianna, FL	2,737	2,718	19
Palatka, FL	3,571	3,510	61
Waycross, GA	2,937	2,782	155
Perry, FL	543	541	2
Gainesville 1-16th Street, FL	66	66	0
Gainesville 2-98th Street, FL	1,168	1,112	56
Gainesville 3-64th Street (C), FL	1,400	1,312	88
Gainesville 4-64th Street (O), FL	6,064	5,829	235
Gainesville 5-64th Street (D), FL	4,818	4,129	689
Gainesville 6-23rd Avenue, FL	40	3	37
Jacksonville Southpoint, FL	13,809	12,775	1,034
Ocala West, FL	5,162	4,608	554
Jacksonville 2 University Boulevard, FL	10,846	10,219	627
Lake City, FL	3,009	2,946	63