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Minneapolis Review

Monday, November 25, 2024

VA Minneapolis HCS facilities schedule 90,368 medical appointments in April 2020

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The VA Minneapolis Health Care System Minnesota scheduled 90,368 pending appointments across its locations during the period ending April 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments 76,524 had a wait time of 30 days or less (84.68%) and 13,844 appointments (15.32%) 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.

VA Minneapolis Health Care System Pending Appointments Scheduled in April
LocationTotal Appointments ScheduledAppointments Scheduled 30 Days or LessAppointments Scheduled More than 30 Days
Minneapolis, MN60,54150,49710,044
Twin Ports, WI7,8926,8131,079
St. James, MN33028743
Hibbing, MN923767156
Maplewood, MN2,3892,076313
Chippewa Valley, WI4,1843,317867
Rochester, MN2,1822,09884
Hayward, WI38132952
Northwest Metro, MN6,4795,806673
Shakopee, MN1,4341,34193
Albert Lea, MN589451138
Minneapolis Harmon Place, MN1131121
Rice Lake, WI809663146
Mankato, MN (Lyle C. Pearson)1,9831,861122
Fort Snelling, MN17170
Ely, MN1228933

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