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Thursday, December 26, 2024

VA Iowa City HCS facilities schedule 55,290 medical appointments in February 2020

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The VA Iowa City Health Care System Iowa scheduled 55,290 pending appointments across its locations during the period ending February 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments 51,360 had a wait time of 30 days or less (92.89%) and 3,930 appointments (7.11%) 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 Iowa City Health Care System Pending Appointments Scheduled in February
LocationTotal Appointments ScheduledAppointments Scheduled 30 Days or LessAppointments Scheduled More than 30 Days
Iowa City, IA21,10318,7232,380
Quad Cities, IA8,6248,193431
Quincy, IL2,7172,63087
Waterloo, IA2,8392,74693
Galesburg, IL (Lane A. Evans)2,4132,34766
Dubuque, IA2,1502,08367
Cedar Rapids, IA3,5163,41997
Ottumwa, IA2,5702,55614
Sterling, IL93787166
Decorah, IA84782918
Coralville, IA3,5963,484112
Linn County, IA72702
Iowa City, IA - Mobile300174126
Davenport, IA2512465
Iowa City South Clinton Street, IA3,3552,989366

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