Fayetteville Today

The Fayetteville VA Medical Center, subsidiary 565 in Fayetteville, North Carolina, scheduled 12,273 pending appointments during the period ending July 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 10,481 had a wait time of 30 days or less (85.4%) and 1,792 appointments (14.6%) 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
565GL	Fayetteville	51,354	46,534	4,820
565GC	Wilmington	16,608	15,065	1,543
565	Fayetteville	12,273	10,481	1,792
565GA	Jacksonville	3,756	3,682	74
565GG	Sanford	2,860	2,803	57
565GF	Goldsboro	2,696	2,650	46
565GE	Pembroke	2,201	2,188	13
565GH	Holden Beach	1,529	1,518	11
565GD	Hamlet	1,422	1,402	20
565GM	Jacksonville	1,055	1,054	1
565GJ	Jacksonville	1,035	1,031	4
565QA	Fayetteville	374	374	0
565QD	Fayetteville	338	261	77
565MD	IDES Camp Lejeune	54	54	0
565MB	IDES Fort Bragg	28	28	0

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration