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VA New Mexico HCS facilities schedule 66,538 medical appointments in November 2020

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The VA New Mexico Health Care System in Albuquerque New Mexico scheduled 66,538 pending appointments across its locations during the period ending November 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments 57,645 had a wait time of 30 days or less (86.63%) and 8,893 appointments (13.37%) 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.

VA New Mexico Health Care System in Albuquerque Pending Appointments Scheduled in November
LocationTotal Appointments ScheduledAppointments Scheduled 30 Days or LessAppointments Scheduled More than 30 Days
Albuquerque, NM (Raymond G. Murphy)51,56543,4968,069
Las Vegas, NM1,0751,06213
Artesia, NM96994227
Farmington, NM2,0691,98287
Silver City, NM1551514
Gallup, NM86484024
Espanola, NM775493282
Truth or Consequences, NM4774689
Alamogordo, NM1,4841,44539
Durango, CO1,5571,54314
Santa Fe, NM2,1052,03174
Northwest Metro, NM3,0212,774247
Taos, NM4154114
Raton, NM770

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