Mercer Times

The VA New Jersey Health Care System, subsidiary 561GA in Hamilton, New Jersey, scheduled 881 pending appointments during the period ending October 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 868 had a wait time of 30 days or less (98.5%) and 13 appointments (1.5%) 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 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
561	East Orange	18,152	15,688	2,464
561BZ	Brick	10,651	9,956	695
561A4	Lyons	8,683	6,985	1,698
561GI	Tinton Falls	3,209	3,163	46
561GD	Hackensack	3,094	3,061	33
561GF	Piscataway	956	940	16
561GJ	Paterson	932	883	49
561GA	Hamilton	881	868	13
561GH	Morristown	785	775	10
561GE	Jersey City	772	765	7
561GK	Sussex	607	581	26
561GB	Elizabeth	5	5	0

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration