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VA New Mexico HCS facilities schedule 81,735 medical appointments in January 2019

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The VA New Mexico Health Care System in Albuquerque New Mexico scheduled 81,735 pending appointments across its locations during the period ending January 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments 72,255 had a wait time of 30 days or less (88.4%) and 9,480 appointments (11.6%) 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 January
LocationTotal Appointments ScheduledAppointments Scheduled 30 Days or LessAppointments Scheduled More than 30 Days
Albuquerque, NM (Raymond G. Murphy)61,55053,3888,162
Las Vegas, NM88285329
Artesia, NM96193328
Farmington, NM2,0871,824263
Silver City, NM40236438
Gallup, NM1,2221,13983
Espanola, NM1,1301,08941
Truth or Consequences, NM1,0581,04018
Alamogordo, NM1,3901,274116
Durango, CO1,8701,80169
Santa Fe, NM2,9372,765172
Northwest Metro, NM4,8894,495394
Taos, NM94489549
Raton, NM41239418
IDES Kirtland AFB110

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