South Maine News

The VA Maine Health Care System, subsidiary 402GD in Saco, Maine, scheduled 1,517 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, 1,389 had a wait time of 30 days or less (91.6%) and 128 appointments (8.4%) were scheduled more than 30 days out.

A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) in January 2019 reported 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.

However, the Government Accountability Office released a report in July 2019 cautinging 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 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
402	Augusta	29,329	24,206	5,123
402HB	Bangor	7,807	6,380	1,427
402GE	Lewiston	2,944	2,431	513
402HC	Portland	2,387	2,240	147
402GD	Saco	1,517	1,389	128
402GA	Caribou	916	898	18
402GC	Rumford	483	472	11
402GB	Calais	372	335	37
402GF	Lincoln	160	93	67
402QA	Fort Kent	11	11	0
402HL	Bingham	1	1	0

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration