NE New Mexico News

The VA New Mexico Health Care System, subsidiary 501HB in Raton, New Mexico, scheduled 94 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, 94 had a wait time of 30 days or less.

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
501	Albuquerque	57,160	47,851	9,309
501GM	Rio Rancho	2,656	2,504	152
501GK	Santa Fe	1,876	1,797	79
501GI	Alamogordo	1,524	1,499	25
501GB	Farmington	1,493	1,425	68
501GJ	Durango	1,021	1,009	12
501G2	Las Vegas	987	969	18
501GE	Espanola	905	715	190
501GA	Artesia	616	590	26
501GH	Truth or Consequences	476	471	5
501GD	Gallup	471	460	11
501GN	Taos	442	431	11
501GC	Silver City	174	170	4
501HB	Raton	94	94	0

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration