Palm Coast Times

The North Florida/South Georgia VA Health Care System, subsidiary 573GL in Palatka, Florida, scheduled 2,649 pending appointments during the period ending December 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 2,629 had a wait time of 30 days or less (99.2%) and 20 appointments (0.8%) 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 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
573	Gainesville	49,557	44,554	5,003
573BY	Jacksonville	31,419	28,622	2,797
573GI	The Villages	23,654	22,632	1,022
573GF	Tallahassee	19,590	17,848	1,742
573A4	Lake City	12,393	11,161	1,232
573QG	Jacksonville Southpoint	10,211	9,522	689
573GD	Ocala	8,216	8,103	113
573GE	Saint Augustine	7,740	7,557	183
573QJ	Jacksonville	7,174	6,529	645
573QD	Gainesville	4,851	4,547	304
573GA	Valdosta	4,332	4,299	33
573QK	Lake City	4,137	4,107	30
573QE	Gainesville	3,833	3,531	302
573GJ	St. Marys	2,857	2,799	58
573GM	Waycross	2,716	2,685	31
573QH	Ocala	2,667	2,659	8
573GL	Palatka	2,649	2,629	20
573GK	Marianna	2,214	2,179	35
573QB	Gainesville 2-98th Street	1,002	904	98
573GN	Perry	550	550	0
573QC	Gainesville	90	56	34
573QA	Gainesville 1-16th Street	42	41	1
573QF	Gainesville	17	17	0

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration