Kingsport Reporter

The Mountain Home VA Medical Center, subsidiary 621GJ in Bristol, Virginia scheduled 3,403 pending appointments during the period ending June 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 3,381 had a wait time of 30 days or less (99.4%) and 22 appointments (0.7%) 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 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
621	Mountain Home	56,614	52,116	4,498
621BY	Knoxville	17,909	17,538	371
621GI	Sevierville	4,593	4,466	127
621GJ	Bristol	3,403	3,381	22
621GG	Morristown	2,555	2,553	2
621GC	Norton	2,022	2,016	6
621GA	Rogersville	1,723	1,706	17
621GK	LaFollette	1,678	1,671	7
621QE	Knoxville	830	827	3
621QA	Jonesville	454	448	6
621QB	Marion	441	405	36
621QD	Knoxville	237	237	0
621QC	Vansant	219	218	1
621BU	Mountain Home	37	36	1

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration