North Michigan News

The Aleda E. Lutz VA Medical Center, subsidiary 655GC in Oscoda, Michigan, scheduled 1,774 pending appointments during the period ending September 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 1,721 had a wait time of 30 days or less (97%) and 53 appointments (3%) 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
655	Saginaw	14,409	11,113	3,296
655QA	Saginaw Barnard Road	2,503	2,466	37
655GB	Traverse City	1,893	1,755	138
655GC	Oscoda	1,774	1,721	53
655GF	Bad Axe	1,560	1,541	19
655GE	Clare	1,539	1,441	98
655GD	Alpena	1,348	1,245	103
655GG	Cadillac	1,069	944	125
655GA	Gaylord	773	711	62
655GI	Grayling	515	423	92
655GH	Mackinaw City	382	379	3

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration