Nebraska Panhandle News

The Cheyenne VA Medical Center, subsidiary 442GB in Sidney, Nebraska scheduled 183 pending appointments during the period ending January 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 163 had a wait time of 30 days or less (89.1%) and 20 appointments (10.9%) 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
442	Cheyenne	11,622	10,497	1,125
442GD	Loveland	6,402	5,573	829
442GC	Fort Collins	2,710	2,614	96
442QD	Laramie	195	167	28
442GB	Sidney	183	163	20
442QA	Rawlins	122	120	2
442QE	Sterling	112	102	10
442QB	Torrington	83	82	1
442HK	Wheatland	57	52	5

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration