Branson Times

The VA of the Ozarks Health Care System, subsidiary 564GC in Branson, Missouri, scheduled 6,620 pending appointments during the period ending August 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 6,271 had a wait time of 30 days or less (94.7%) and 349 appointments (5.3%) 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
564	Fayetteville	23,946	21,525	2,421
564BY	Springfield	21,494	20,002	1,492
564GC	Branson	6,620	6,271	349
564GF	Joplin	3,435	3,105	330
564GB	Fort Smith	2,312	2,212	100
564GA	Harrison	1,534	1,473	61
564GE	Jay	800	778	22
564GD	Ozark	608	559	49
564QB	Sunbridge	130	110	20
564QA	Township	2	1	1

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration