Centroplex News

The VA Central Texas Health Care System, subsidiary 674 in Temple, Texas, scheduled 85,173 pending appointments during the period ending March 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 74,184 had a wait time of 30 days or less (87.1%) and 10,989 appointments (12.9%) 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.

However, the Government Accountability Office released a report in July 2019 cautinging 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 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
674	Temple	85,173	74,184	10,989
674BY	Austin	38,968	33,365	5,603
674A4	Waco	15,469	14,274	1,195
674GD	Cedar Park	8,587	8,356	231
674GD	Cedar Park	8,587	8,356	231
674GF	Temple	5,533	5,365	168
674GC	Bryan	4,295	4,210	85
674GA	Palestine	2,154	2,053	101
674GB	Brownwood	1,551	1,449	102
674HB	LaGrange	983	973	10

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration