Hill Country Chronicle

The VA South Texas Health Care System in San Antonio reported that 299 patients newly enrolled in its benefits program requested appointments but had not received one during the period ending November 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

During that same time frame, the system scheduled 179,885 pending appointments across its 16 healthcare facilities.

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 or better to 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.

At a hearing before the House Veterans Affairs Committee after the report was released, Debra Draper, health care director at the GAO, said new patients may actually wait up to 70 days for an appointment when they first enroll for benefits.

The VA explains on its website that when veterans apply for benefits, they are assigned to 1 of 8 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
San Antonio, TX (Audie L. Murphy)	67,129	61,411	5,718
Kerrville, TX	14,425	13,809	616
San Antonio, TX - VADOM	124	124	0
San Antonio Eckert Road, TX (Frank M. Tejeda)	19,114	18,512	602
Unknown	4	4	0
Victoria, TX	3,206	3,184	22
South Bexar County, TX	4,909	4,871	38
Beeville, TX	277	274	3
San Antonio Woodcock Drive, TX	14,464	14,370	94
New Braunfels, TX	4,250	4,233	17
Seguin, TX	1,030	1,028	2
North Central Federal, TX	12,919	12,763	156
Balcones Heights, TX	8,467	8,420	47
Shavano Park, TX	5,417	5,402	15
San Antonio SARRTP	86	73	13
Data Point, TX	24,064	18,598	5,466

Source: U.S. Veteran’s Administration