Central Oregon Times

The Portland VA Medical Center, subsidiary 648GA in Bend, Oregon scheduled 5,269 pending appointments in September compared to 5,376 during the same period last year, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran's Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments this September, 4,756 had a wait time of 30 days or less (90.3%) and 513 appointments (9.7%) 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 or better to 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.

At a hearing before the House Veterans Affairs Committee after the report was released, Debra Draper, health care director at the GAO, said new patients may actually wait up to 70 days for an appointment when they first enroll for benefits.

The VA explains on its website that when veterans apply for benefits, they are assigned to 1 of 8 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 who earn a higher income are placed in the lower priority groups.

Portland VA Medical Center - 648GA Appointments Scheduled in September 2019 vs. September 2018

Facility Code	Location	Total Appointments Scheduled in September 2019	Total Appointments Scheduled in September 2018	Percent change in number of appointments
648	Portland	50,785	51,703	-1.8%
648BU	Vancouver	44	12	266.7%
648GA	Bend	5,269	5,376	-2%
648GB	Salem	8,615	8,548	0.8%
648GD	Warrenton	295	337	-12.5%
648GE	Fairview	3,307	3,217	2.8%
648GF	Hillsboro	4,035	3,893	3.6%
648GG	West Linn	2,429	2,388	1.7%
648GH	Newport	222	211	5.2%
648GI	Portland	233	250	-6.8%
648GJ	The Dalles	1,385	1,133	22.2%

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration