East Central Iowa News

The VA Central Iowa Health Care System, subsidiary 636GD in Marshalltown, Iowa scheduled 474 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, 455 had a wait time of 30 days or less (96%) and 19 appointments (4%) 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
636A6	Des Moines	24,025	21,615	2,410
636GC	Mason City	3,225	2,837	388
636GK	Fort Dodge	2,450	2,396	54
636GM	Carroll	849	777	72
636GR	Knoxville	827	793	34
636GD	Marshalltown	474	455	19
636GX	Fort Dodge	375	374	1
636QB	Des Moines	148	148	0
636BU	Des Moines	10	10	0

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration