Yuba-Sutter Times

The VA Northern California Health Care System, subsidiary 612GI in Yuba City, California, scheduled 2,082 pending appointments during the period ending July 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 2,005 had a wait time of 30 days or less (96.3%) and 77 appointments (3.7%) 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
612A4	Sacramento	33,642	29,344	4,298
612GF	Martinez	16,777	14,709	2,068
612GH	McClellan Park	14,617	12,931	1,686
612B4	Redding	7,791	6,843	948
612GG	Chico	7,435	6,884	551
612GE	Mare Island	4,800	4,407	393
612BY	Oakland	3,818	3,426	392
612GD	Fairfield	3,257	2,982	275
612QC	Cypress Avenue	3,048	2,278	770
612GI	Yuba City	2,082	2,005	77
612QB	Oakland	1,878	1,822	56
612GJ	Yreka	421	381	40
612QD	Howe Road	1	1	0

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration