Tri-City Sun

The Aleda E. Lutz VA Medical Center, subsidiary 655 in Saginaw, Michigan, scheduled 15,048 pending appointments during the period ending August 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 11,476 had a wait time of 30 days or less (76.3%) and 3,572 appointments (23.7%) 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
655	Saginaw	15,048	11,476	3,572
655QA	Saginaw Barnard Road	3,071	3,044	27
655GB	Traverse City	2,008	1,924	84
655GC	Oscoda	1,774	1,718	56
655GE	Clare	1,670	1,572	98
655GF	Bad Axe	1,529	1,524	5
655GD	Alpena	1,474	1,397	77
655GG	Cadillac	972	871	101
655GA	Gaylord	801	727	74
655GI	Grayling	551	505	46
655GH	Mackinaw City	441	437	4

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration