Morris Leader

The VA New Jersey Health Care System, subsidiary 561GH in Morristown, New Jersey, scheduled 819 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, 753 had a wait time of 30 days or less (91.9%) and 66 appointments (8.1%) 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	19,989	17,355	2,634
561BZ	Brick	10,872	9,716	1,156
561A4	Lyons	9,323	7,337	1,986
561GI	Tinton Falls	2,950	2,901	49
561GD	Hackensack	2,362	2,337	25
561GJ	Paterson	1,025	1,014	11
561GF	Piscataway	925	875	50
561GE	Jersey City	827	827	0
561GH	Morristown	819	753	66
561GA	Hamilton	559	554	5
561GK	Sussex	447	444	3
561GB	Elizabeth	4	4	0

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration