Mohawk Valley Times

The Albany Stratton VA Medical Center, subsidiary 528G6 in Fonda, New York scheduled 1,266 pending appointments during the period ending February 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 1,248 had a wait time of 30 days or less (98.6%) and 18 appointments (1.4%) 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
528A8	Albany	38,990	36,328	2,662
528GT	Glens Falls	3,441	3,385	56
528GZ	Kingston	2,236	2,216	20
528GV	Plattsburgh	2,217	2,201	16
528GW	Schenectady	1,869	1,820	49
528GY	Clifton Park	1,746	1,716	30
528G6	Fonda	1,266	1,248	18
528G7	Catskill	1,159	1,121	38
528GX	Troy	1,011	987	24
528G3	Bainbridge	799	757	42
528QK	Saranac Lake	638	624	14
528G2	Westport	541	533	8

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration