Larimer News

The Cheyenne VA Medical Center, subsidiary 442GC in Fort Collins, Colorado, scheduled 1,320 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, 1,186 had a wait time of 30 days or less (89.9%) and 134 appointments (10.2%) 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
442	Cheyenne	8,558	6,814	1,744
442GD	Loveland	3,735	2,986	749
442GC	Fort Collins	1,320	1,186	134
442GB	Sidney	182	155	27
442QB	Torrington	124	100	24
442QA	Rawlins	108	101	7
442QD	Laramie	95	74	21
442QE	Sterling	87	52	35
442HK	Wheatland	86	66	20

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration