Morris Leader

The VA New Jersey Health Care System, subsidiary 561GH in Morristown, New Jersey, scheduled 853 pending appointments during the period ending September 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 847 had a wait time of 30 days or less (99.3%) and six appointments (0.7%) 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 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
561	East Orange	17,462	15,108	2,354
561BZ	Brick	9,462	8,900	562
561A4	Lyons	8,126	6,561	1,565
561GD	Hackensack	3,412	3,384	28
561GI	Tinton Falls	2,985	2,944	41
561GH	Morristown	853	847	6
561GJ	Paterson	840	796	44
561GF	Piscataway	825	818	7
561GE	Jersey City	772	766	6
561GA	Hamilton	704	692	12
561GK	Sussex	591	562	29
561GB	Elizabeth	6	6	0

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration