NE New York Today

The Albany Stratton VA Medical Center, subsidiary 528GV in Plattsburgh, New York, scheduled 1,163 pending appointments during the period ending November 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 1,116 had a wait time of 30 days or less (96%) and 47 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 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
528A8	Albany	26,884	24,416	2,468
528GT	Glens Falls	3,172	3,115	57
528GZ	Kingston	1,847	1,834	13
528GW	Schenectady	1,637	1,612	25
528GY	Clifton Park	1,589	1,570	19
528GV	Plattsburgh	1,163	1,116	47
528G6	Fonda	1,083	1,076	7
528GX	Troy	978	967	11
528G7	Catskill	688	677	11
528G3	Bainbridge	489	483	6
528G2	Westport	440	436	4
528QK	Saranac Lake	395	378	17

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration