Kitsap Review

The VA Puget Sound Health Care System, subsidiary 663GB in Bremerton, Washington scheduled 1,778 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, 1,522 had a wait time of 30 days or less (85.6%) and 256 appointments (14.4%) 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
663	Seattle	37,373	32,877	4,496
663A4	Tacoma	30,689	26,778	3,911
663GC	Mount Vernon	3,140	2,854	286
663GD	Chehalis	2,664	2,535	129
663GA	Bellevue	2,352	1,784	568
663GB	Bremerton	1,778	1,522	256
663GE	North Olympic Peninsula	950	774	176
663HK	Puget Sound	185	176	9

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration