Springs Times

The VA Eastern Colorado Health Care System, subsidiary 554GE in Colorado Springs, Colorado scheduled 26,752 pending appointments during the period ending January 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 23,506 had a wait time of 30 days or less (87.9%) and 3,246 appointments (12.1%) 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 who 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
554	Aurora	49,863	41,796	8,067
554GE	Colorado Springs	26,752	23,506	3,246
554GD	Pueblo	9,317	8,342	975
554GC	Golden	8,427	7,601	826
554GB	Aurora	4,592	4,430	162
554GJ	Denver East 9th Avenue	2,364	2,236	128
554QB	Aurora	1,194	958	236
554GG	La Junta	715	703	12
554GF	Alamosa	569	559	10
554GI	Burlington	393	382	11
554GH	Lamar	298	280	18
554QC	Salida	145	137	8
554MA	IDES Fort Carson	119	112	7
554QA	York Street	9	9	0
554A5	Denver	5	5	0

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration