Durham Reporter

The Durham VA Medical Center, subsidiary 558GE in Durham, North Carolina, scheduled 4,749 pending appointments during the period ending October 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 4,557 had a wait time of 30 days or less (96%) and 192 appointments (4%) 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
558	Durham	50,904	43,944	6,960
558GA	Greenville	24,011	21,496	2,515
558GE	Durham	4,749	4,557	192
558GB	Raleigh	3,929	3,818	111
558GC	Morehead City	3,904	3,731	173
558GG	Raleigh-Atlantic Avenue	2,428	2,353	75
558GF	Raleigh	2,378	1,960	418
558GD	Durham	2,130	1,993	137
558QA	Raleigh	166	126	40

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration