ABQ Times

The VA New Mexico Health Care System in Albuquerque New Mexico scheduled 86,558 pending appointments across its locations during the period ending November 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments 76,832 had a wait time of 30 days or less (88.76%) and 9,726 appointments (11.24%) 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.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO), however, released a report in July 2019 cautioning 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.

Debra Draper, health care director at the GAO, told the House Veterans Affairs Committee new patients may actually wait up to 70 days for an appointment when they first enroll for benefits.

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 don’t have service-connected disabilities and who earn a higher income are placed in the lower priority groups.

Location	Total Appointments Scheduled	Appointments Scheduled 30 Days or Less	Appointments Scheduled More than 30 Days
Albuquerque, NM (Raymond G. Murphy)	64,758	56,461	8,297
Las Vegas, NM	956	936	20
Artesia, NM	1,845	1,804	41
Farmington, NM	2,594	2,324	270
Silver City, NM	837	806	31
Gallup, NM	1,166	896	270
Espanola, NM	524	460	64
Truth or Consequences, NM	897	890	7
Alamogordo, NM	1,591	1,436	155
Durango, CO	1,599	1,578	21
Santa Fe, NM	2,964	2,878	86
Northwest Metro, NM	5,303	4,892	411
Taos, NM	902	858	44
Raton, NM	622	613	9