Hernando Reporter

The James A. Haley VA Hospital in Tampa Florida scheduled 158,156 pending appointments across its locations during the period ending August 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments 152,872 had a wait time of 30 days or less (96.66%) and 5,284 appointments (3.34%) were scheduled more than 30 days out.

A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) in January 2019 reported 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 cautioning 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.

Debra Draper, health care director at the GAO, told the House Veterans Affairs Committee new patients may actually wait up to 70 days for an appointment when they first enroll for benefits.

The VA explains 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 don’t have service-connected disabilities and who earn a higher income are placed in the lower priority groups.

Location	Total Appointments Scheduled	Appointments Scheduled 30 Days or Less	Appointments Scheduled More than 30 Days
Tampa, FL (James A. Haley)	43,830	41,008	2,822
Tampa, FL - VADOM	1	1	0
New Port Richey, FL	14,145	14,046	99
Lakeland, FL	11,420	11,281	139
Brooksville, FL	6,941	6,893	48
Zephyrhills, FL	2,979	2,943	36
South Hillsborough, FL	8,737	8,584	153
Forty Sixth Street North, FL	771	641	130
Forty Sixth Street South, FL	26,116	25,574	542
West Lakeland, FL	3,106	3,032	74
Deer Park, FL	181	175	6
Highway Nineteen, FL	2,104	2,001	103
Winners Circle, FL	3	3	0
Little Road, FL	1,042	1,036	6
Bruce B. Downs Boulevard, FL	4,018	3,771	247
Medical View Lane, FL	574	570	4
Hidden River, FL	24,586	23,754	832