Branson Times

The VA of the Ozarks Health Care System, subsidiary 564GC in Branson, Missouri, scheduled 6,774 pending appointments during the period ending March 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 6,441 had a wait time of 30 days or less (95.1%) and 333 appointments (4.9%) 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.

However, the Government Accountability Office released a report in July 2019 cautinging 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 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	25,204	23,822	1,382
564BY	Springfield	21,874	20,912	962
564GC	Branson	6,774	6,441	333
564GF	Joplin	3,497	3,369	128
564GB	Fort Smith	3,311	3,204	107
564GA	Harrison	1,605	1,566	39
564GE	Jay	1,131	1,128	3
564QB	Sunbridge	522	456	66
564GD	Ozark	498	426	72
564QA	Township	3	3	0

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration