Anne Arundel Today

The VA Maryland Health Care System, subsidiary 512GG in Fort Meade, Maryland, scheduled 786 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, 743 had a wait time of 30 days or less (94.5%) and 43 appointments (5.5%) 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
512	Baltimore	27,203	22,722	4,481
512A5	Perry Point	4,910	4,615	295
512GD	Baltimore	3,197	3,031	166
512GA	Cambridge	2,496	2,420	76
512GC	Glen Burnie	1,452	1,404	48
512GF	Rosedale	788	781	7
512GG	Fort Meade	786	743	43
512GE	Pocomoke City	491	471	20
512QA	Baltimore West Fayette Street	396	392	4
512	Baltimore	29	27	2

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration