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VA New Mexico HCS facilities schedule 83,757 medical appointments in February 2019

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The VA New Mexico Health Care System in Albuquerque New Mexico scheduled 83,757 pending appointments across its locations during the period ending February 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments 74,206 had a wait time of 30 days or less (88.6%) and 9,551 appointments (11.4%) 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.

VA New Mexico Health Care System in Albuquerque Pending Appointments Scheduled in February
LocationTotal Appointments ScheduledAppointments Scheduled 30 Days or LessAppointments Scheduled More than 30 Days
Albuquerque, NM (Raymond G. Murphy)63,44755,1138,334
Las Vegas, NM91789522
Artesia, NM1,01799918
Farmington, NM2,0271,772255
Silver City, NM48744740
Gallup, NM1,2961,20987
Espanola, NM1,0491,01039
Truth or Consequences, NM1,0321,01517
Alamogordo, NM1,4221,305117
Durango, CO1,7671,71948
Santa Fe, NM2,9742,810164
Northwest Metro, NM4,9664,604362
Taos, NM94090238
Raton, NM40839810
IDES Kirtland AFB880

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