NE Atlanta News

The VA Atlanta Health Care System, subsidiary 508GE in Oakwood, Georgia scheduled 11,022 pending appointments during the period ending November 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 10,721 had a wait time of 30 days or less (97.3%) and 301 appointments (2.7%) 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
508	Atlanta	85,149	78,441	6,708
508QF	Atlanta North Arcadia Avenue	38,630	34,432	4,198
508GA	Atlanta	19,978	18,717	1,261
508GE	Oakwood	11,022	10,721	301
508GH	Lawrenceville	10,433	10,263	170
508GG	Stockbridge	9,648	9,596	52
508GK	Carrollton	8,578	8,095	483
508GI	Newnan	7,472	7,435	37
508GF	Austell	5,054	5,022	32
508QE	Lawrenceville	4,178	4,151	27
508GJ	Blairsville	4,009	3,956	53
508GO	Northeast Cobb County	3,294	3,218	76
508GL	Rome	3,131	3,078	53
508QC	Atlanta	1,662	1,653	9
508QB	East Point	414	403	11
508QD	East Point	132	129	3

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration