Sandoval News

The VA New Mexico Health Care System, subsidiary 501GM in Rio Rancho, New Mexico, scheduled 3,460 pending appointments during the period ending October 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 3,037 had a wait time of 30 days or less (87.8%) and 423 appointments (12.2%) 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 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
501	Albuquerque	51,837	43,868	7,969
501GM	Rio Rancho	3,460	3,037	423
501GK	Santa Fe	2,452	2,382	70
501GB	Farmington	2,247	2,087	160
501GJ	Durango	1,643	1,625	18
501GI	Alamogordo	1,462	1,408	54
501GD	Gallup	1,180	1,103	77
501G2	Las Vegas	1,110	1,094	16
501GA	Artesia	984	956	28
501GE	Espanola	857	513	344
501GH	Truth or Consequences	591	581	10
501GN	Taos	519	511	8
501GC	Silver City	232	224	8
501HB	Raton	47	46	1

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration