West NY News

The VA Western New York at Buffalo Health Care System, subsidiary 528GR in Olean, New York scheduled 2,035 pending appointments during the period ending December 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 2,001 had a wait time of 30 days or less (98.3%) and 34 appointments (1.7%) 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
528	Buffalo	55,851	52,510	3,341
528A4	Batavia	7,592	7,450	142
528GR	Olean	2,035	2,001	34
528GB	Jamestown	1,834	1,810	24
528GC	Dunkirk	1,774	1,747	27
528GD	Niagara Falls	1,725	1,694	31
528GQ	Lackawanna	1,650	1,621	29
528GK	Lockport	1,074	1,063	11
528QA	Buffalo	180	179	1
528QB	Packard	72	71	1

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration