Pasco Reporter

The James A. Haley VA Hospital, subsidiary 673QD in New Port Richey, Florida scheduled 2,073 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, 1,782 had a wait time of 30 days or less (86%) and 291 appointments (14%) 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
673	Tampa	60,522	57,165	3,357
673QJ	Tampa	37,076	35,503	1,573
673QB	Forty Sixth Street South	33,210	31,663	1,547
673BZ	New Port Richey	19,027	18,535	492
673GB	Lakeland	13,798	13,615	183
673GG	Riverview	9,867	9,205	662
673QH	Tampa	9,418	9,291	127
673GC	Brooksville	9,088	8,991	97
673QC	Lakeland	5,063	4,530	533
673QE	Highway Nineteen	3,424	3,248	176
673GF	Zephyrhills	3,417	3,333	84
673QD	New Port Richey	2,073	1,782	291
673QG	New Port Richey	1,330	1,310	20
673QI	Zephyrhills	658	652	6
673QA	Forty Sixth Street North	571	567	4
673QF	Tampa	13	13	0
673BV	Tampa	3	3	0

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration