Hernando Reporter

The James A. Haley VA Hospital in Tampa Florida scheduled 207,398 pending appointments across its locations during the period ending November 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments 197,662 had a wait time of 30 days or less (95.31%) and 9,736 appointments (4.69%) 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)	58,560	55,280	3,280
New Port Richey, FL	18,393	17,843	550
Lakeland, FL	13,490	13,344	146
Brooksville, FL	8,852	8,719	133
Zephyrhills, FL	3,390	3,330	60
South Hillsborough, FL	8,453	7,789	664
Forty Sixth Street North, FL	538	523	15
Forty Sixth Street South, FL	32,442	31,258	1,184
West Lakeland, FL	4,717	4,287	430
Deer Park, FL	1,858	1,295	563
Highway Nineteen, FL	3,262	2,911	351
Winners Circle, FL	13	13	0
Little Road, FL	1,190	1,172	18
Bruce B. Downs Boulevard, FL	9,201	8,907	294
Medical View Lane, FL	662	659	3
Hidden River, FL	36,339	34,337	2,002