North Michigan News

The Aleda E. Lutz VA Medical Center, subsidiary 655GD in Alpena, Michigan, scheduled 1,400 pending appointments during the period ending November 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 1,302 had a wait time of 30 days or less (93%) and 98 appointments (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 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	15,811	13,455	2,356
655QA	Saginaw Barnard Road	2,702	2,639	63
655GB	Traverse City	2,197	2,060	137
655GC	Oscoda	1,935	1,906	29
655GF	Bad Axe	1,649	1,628	21
655GE	Clare	1,494	1,354	140
655GD	Alpena	1,400	1,302	98
655GG	Cadillac	1,157	1,065	92
655GA	Gaylord	998	880	118
655GI	Grayling	593	452	141
655GH	Mackinaw City	336	325	11

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration