Kingsport Reporter

The Mountain Home VA Medical Center, subsidiary 621GA in Rogersville, Tennessee scheduled 1,779 pending appointments during the period ending May 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 1,771 had a wait time of 30 days or less (99.6%) and eight appointments (0.5%) 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	58,441	54,493	3,948
621BY	Knoxville	18,622	18,280	342
621GI	Sevierville	4,610	4,508	102
621GJ	Bristol	3,640	3,616	24
621GG	Morristown	2,611	2,598	13
621GC	Norton	2,096	2,089	7
621GA	Rogersville	1,779	1,771	8
621GK	LaFollette	1,760	1,754	6
621QE	Knoxville	839	836	3
621QD	Knoxville	701	698	3
621QA	Jonesville	463	456	7
621QB	Marion	456	424	32
621QC	Vansant	226	225	1
621BU	Mountain Home	44	44	0

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration