SE Tennessee News

The Tennessee Valley Health Care System, subsidiary 626GN in Athens, Tennessee scheduled 2,350 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, 2,264 had a wait time of 30 days or less (96.3%) and 86 appointments (3.7%) 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
626	Nashville	60,465	55,672	4,793
626A4	Murfreesboro	49,750	46,884	2,866
626GF	Chattanooga	19,013	18,388	625
626GE	Clarksville	15,685	13,773	1,912
626QC	Chattanooga	6,897	6,077	820
626QB	Charlotte Avenue	6,493	6,269	224
626GH	Cookeville	5,333	5,196	137
626GC	Bowling Green	4,878	4,719	159
626GJ	Hopkinsville	4,792	4,359	433
626GO	International Plaza	4,765	4,663	102
626GM	Columbia	4,356	4,282	74
626QA	Albion Street	3,801	3,489	312
626GK	McMinnville	2,526	2,508	18
626GN	Athens	2,350	2,264	86
626GL	Harriman	2,295	2,228	67
626GP	Gallatin	2,104	2,062	42
626GA	Dover	1,365	1,235	130
626GG	Tullahoma	1,315	1,313	2
626MA	IDES Fort Campbell	325	325	0
626QD	Murfreesboro	272	267	5

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration