Upper Cumberland Times

The Tennessee Valley Health Care System, subsidiary 626GH in Cookeville, Tennessee, scheduled 5,694 pending appointments during the period ending November 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 5,537 had a wait time of 30 days or less (97.2%) and 157 appointments (2.8%) 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
626	Nashville	50,595	45,289	5,306
626A4	Murfreesboro	46,140	40,890	5,250
626GF	Chattanooga	15,390	14,780	610
626GE	Clarksville	13,394	12,471	923
626GH	Cookeville	5,694	5,537	157
626QB	Charlotte Avenue	5,684	5,564	120
626QC	Chattanooga	5,489	5,056	433
626GC	Bowling Green	5,025	4,777	248
626GJ	Hopkinsville	4,243	3,903	340
626GO	International Plaza	3,953	3,744	209
626GM	Columbia	3,708	3,533	175
626QA	Albion Street	2,962	2,898	64
626GK	McMinnville	2,261	2,233	28
626GL	Harriman	2,127	2,081	46
626GN	Athens	2,076	2,021	55
626GP	Gallatin	1,685	1,671	14
626GA	Dover	1,399	1,281	118
626GG	Tullahoma	1,320	1,287	33
626QD	Murfreesboro	425	395	30

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration