East Michigan News

The Aleda E. Lutz VA Medical Center, subsidiary 655GE in Clare, Michigan, scheduled 1,332 pending appointments during the period ending March 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 1,280 had a wait time of 30 days or less (96.1%) and 52 appointments (3.9%) 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.

However, the Government Accountability Office released a report in July 2019 cautinging 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 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	18,592	15,572	3,020
655QA	Saginaw Barnard Road	2,957	2,942	15
655GB	Traverse City	2,626	2,491	135
655GC	Oscoda	2,036	2,018	18
655GF	Bad Axe	1,867	1,864	3
655GD	Alpena	1,810	1,746	64
655GG	Cadillac	1,387	1,341	46
655GE	Clare	1,332	1,280	52
655GA	Gaylord	1,249	1,206	43
655GI	Grayling	624	594	30
655GH	Mackinaw City	489	480	9

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration