East Hillsborough News

The James A. Haley VA Hospital in Tampa Florida scheduled 160,347 pending appointments across its locations during the period ending October 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments 155,021 had a wait time of 30 days or less (96.68%) and 5,326 appointments (3.32%) 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.

Location	Total Appointments Scheduled	Appointments Scheduled 30 Days or Less	Appointments Scheduled More than 30 Days
Tampa, FL (James A. Haley)	45,950	42,888	3,062
Tampa, FL - VADOM	2	2	0
New Port Richey, FL	14,843	14,734	109
Lakeland, FL	11,271	11,148	123
Brooksville, FL	7,186	7,076	110
Zephyrhills, FL	2,943	2,920	23
South Hillsborough, FL	9,119	8,898	221
Forty Sixth Street North, FL	635	624	11
Forty Sixth Street South, FL	26,696	25,916	780
West Lakeland, FL	3,318	3,247	71
Deer Park, FL	191	188	3
Highway Nineteen, FL	2,925	2,695	230
Winners Circle, FL	6	6	0
Little Road, FL	1,061	1,048	13
Bruce B. Downs Boulevard, FL	2,597	2,520	77
Medical View Lane, FL	580	577	3
Hidden River, FL	23,517	23,046	471