NC Massachusetts News

The VA Central Western Massachusetts Health Care System, subsidiary 631GF in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, scheduled 850 pending appointments during the period ending July 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 795 had a wait time of 30 days or less (93.5%) and 55 appointments (6.5%) 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
631	Leeds	12,225	10,344	1,881
631BY	Springfield	4,407	4,021	386
631GE	Worcester	3,209	2,983	226
631QA	Plantation Street	2,263	1,616	647
631QB	Lake Avenue	1,556	1,429	127
631GC	Pittsfield	1,374	1,326	48
631GF	Fitchburg	850	795	55
631GD	Greenfield Town	843	787	56

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration