Cedar Rapids Today

The VA Iowa City Health Care System, subsidiary 636QC in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, scheduled 47 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, 47 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 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
636A8	Iowa City	17,511	13,242	4,269
636GF	Davenport	7,239	6,797	442
636GN	Cedar Rapids	2,679	2,478	201
636GG	Quincy	2,233	2,088	145
636GW	Coralville	2,217	2,081	136
636GH	Waterloo	2,106	1,830	276
636GS	Ottumwa	1,965	1,950	15
636GI	Galesburg	1,684	1,591	93
636GJ	Dubuque	1,662	1,417	245
636QJ	Iowa City	1,549	799	750
636GT	Sterling	641	510	131
636GU	Decorah	521	492	29
636QI	Davenport	178	177	1
636QC	Cedar Rapids	47	47	0

Source: U.S. Veteran's Administration