Clay Reporter

The Kansas City VA Medical Center, subsidiary 589JB in Excelsior Springs, Missouri, scheduled 1,838 pending appointments during the period ending March 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 1,804 had a wait time of 30 days or less (98.2%) and 34 appointments (1.9%) were scheduled more than 30 days out.

A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) in January 2019 reported 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.

However, the Government Accountability Office released a report in July 2019 cautinging 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 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
589	Kansas City	46,158	43,217	2,941
589JF	Kansas City	13,641	13,536	105
589G1	Warrensburg	4,230	4,212	18
589JC	Shawnee	3,433	3,399	34
589GB	Belton	2,789	2,739	50
589JB	Excelsior Springs	1,838	1,804	34
589GD	Nevada	1,654	1,639	15
589GZ	Cameron	981	961	20
589GC	Paola	871	844	27
589QA	Overland Park	748	743	5
589QA	Overland Park	748	743	5

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration