Aroostook News

The VA Maine Health Care System, subsidiary 402GA in Caribou, Maine scheduled 1,036 pending appointments during the period ending March 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 1,007 had a wait time of 30 days or less (97.2%) and 29 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 who 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
402	Augusta	41,098	38,210	2,888
402HB	Bangor	13,308	12,546	762
402GE	Lewiston	4,329	4,077	252
402HC	Portland	3,331	3,146	185
402GD	Saco	1,900	1,773	127
402GA	Caribou	1,036	1,007	29
402GB	Calais	709	685	24
402GC	Rumford	692	672	20
402GF	Lincoln	459	426	33
402HL	Bingham	276	268	8
402QA	Fort Kent	31	31	0
402QB	Houlton	18	18	0

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration