Sarasota Review

The VA Bay Pines Health Care System, subsidiary 516GA in Sarasota, Florida, scheduled 10,568 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, 9,889 had a wait time of 30 days or less (93.6%) and 679 appointments (6.4%) 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
516	Bay Pines	76,868	69,033	7,835
516BZ	Cape Coral	45,222	42,240	2,982
516GD	Bradenton	13,644	12,018	1,626
516GA	Sarasota	10,568	9,889	679
516GE	Port Charlotte	8,429	7,802	627
516GC	Palm Harbor	7,113	6,960	153
516GF	Naples	6,897	6,657	240
516GH	Sebring	4,079	4,028	51
516GB	St. Petersburg	2,670	2,588	82

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration