Rockland Reporter

The VA Hudson Valley Health Care System, subsidiary 620GA in New City, New York scheduled 3,105 pending appointments during the period ending February 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 3,050 had a wait time of 30 days or less (98.2%) and 55 appointments (1.8%) 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 who 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
620A4	Wappingers Falls	15,927	14,927	1,000
620	Montrose	6,364	6,133	231
620GA	New City	3,105	3,050	55
620GD	Goshen	2,926	2,854	72
620GE	Port Jervis	2,571	2,547	24
620GG	Poughkeepsie	1,975	1,910	65
620GB	Carmel	1,905	1,864	41
620GF	Monticello	764	743	21
620GH	Pine Plains	404	397	7
620MA	IDES West Point	9	9	0

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration