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Westchester Reporter

Tuesday, December 24, 2024

VA reports increase in number of February appointments scheduled at VA Hudson Valley HCS health facility in Montrose

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The VA Hudson Valley Health Care System, subsidiary 620 in Montrose, New York scheduled 6,578 pending appointments in February compared to 6,242 during the same period last year, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran's Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments this February, 6,326 had a wait time of 30 days or less (96.2%) and 252 appointments (3.8%) 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 or better to 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.

At a hearing before the House Veterans Affairs Committee after the report was released, Debra Draper, health care director at the GAO, said new patients may actually wait up to 70 days for an appointment when they first enroll for benefits.

The VA explains on its website that when veterans apply for benefits, they are assigned to 1 of 8 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.

VA Hudson Valley Health Care System - 620 Appointments Scheduled in February 2020 vs. February 2019

Facility Code
Location
Total Appointments Scheduled in February 2020
Total Appointments Scheduled in February 2019
Percent change in number of appointments
620
Montrose
6,578
6,242
5.4%
620A4
Wappingers Falls
16,488
14,846
11.1%
620GA
New City
3,513
3,109
13%
620GB
Carmel
1,922
1,456
32%
620GD
Goshen
3,114
2,820
10.4%
620GE
Port Jervis
2,640
1,737
52%
620GF
Monticello
907
598
51.7%
620GG
Poughkeepsie
2,024
1,459
38.7%
620GH
Pine Plains
418
262
59.5%
Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration

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