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Central Montana Times

Monday, October 7, 2024

VA Montana HCS facility in Great Falls scheduled 2,834 medical appointments in November 2019

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The VA Montana Health Care System, subsidiary 436GB in Great Falls, Montana scheduled 2,834 pending appointments during the period ending December 1, according to data collected from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.

Of the total number of appointments, 2,621 had a wait time of 30 days or less (92.5%) and 213 appointments (7.5%) 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 who earn a higher income are placed in the lower priority groups.

VA Montana Health Care System Appointments Scheduled in November
Facility CodeLocationTotal Appointments ScheduledAppointments Scheduled 30 Days or LessAppointments Scheduled More than 30 Days
436Fort Harrison15,03213,1211,911
436GHBillings7,1756,547628
436GCMissoula7,0366,780256
436GFKalispell5,2915,075216
436GNBillings3,8593,488371
436GBGreat Falls2,8342,621213
436GAAnaconda1,7441,69153
436QCHelena1,5611,326235
436GDBozeman1,5201,47149
436QAHamilton1,2891,24445
436GMLewistown47740671
436A4Miles City CLC35433519
436HCHavre27723344
436GKGlendive23521124
436GIGlasgow1751705
436GLCut Bank16414123
436QBPlentywood26251
436MAIDES Malmstrom AFB110
Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration

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