Anoka Times

The VA Minneapolis Health Care System Minnesota scheduled 116,977 pending appointments across its locations during the period ending March 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments 106,596 had a wait time of 30 days or less (91.13%) and 10,381 appointments (8.87%) 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
Minneapolis, MN	79,784	72,415	7,369
Twin Ports, WI	9,273	8,325	948
St. James, MN	320	313	7
Hibbing, MN	1,312	1,257	55
Maplewood, MN	3,034	2,854	180
Chippewa Valley, WI	4,821	4,076	745
Rochester, MN	2,468	2,415	53
Hayward, WI	444	416	28
Northwest Metro, MN	9,108	8,328	780
Shakopee, MN	1,745	1,664	81
Albert Lea, MN	709	668	41
Minneapolis Harmon Place, MN	370	366	4
Rice Lake, WI	973	930	43
Mankato, MN (Lyle C. Pearson)	2,223	2,180	43
Fort Snelling, MN	235	235	0
Ely, MN	158	154	4