VA only filling half of its medical appointments while veterans wait for weeks

[corbe]

VA only filling half of its medical appointments while veterans wait for weeks
by Eric Hannel | Sep 17, 2017, 12:01 AM

Internal Department of Veterans Affairs data provided by whistleblowers reveals the agency is only filling about half of its capacity to make medical appointments, even as veterans continue to wait an average of at least 30 days before a medical appointment can be scheduled.

The VA documents show that between July and September of 2017, the agency only used 51.44 percent of the appointments available across its healthcare system.

VA documents also show there are currently 184,520 veterans across the nation waiting longer than 30 days for an appointment and more than 45,000 new veteran patients waiting more than 90 days. Internal VA documents also indicate 479,239 veterans nationwide are waiting for physician requested follow-up appointments over 30 days for the period July to September 2017.

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http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/va-only-filling-half-of-its-medical-appointments-while-veterans-wait-for-weeks/article/2634652

[RoosGirl]

My mom volunteers with a group that does small vacation retreats for wounded vets.  She talked with one of the guys who works across the parking lot from one of the VA hospitals. He told her that the parking lot at the hospital is always empty, and yet he has to wait months to get an appointment there.  Makes my blood boil.

[Suppressed]

 

. . .the agency only used [sic] 51.44 percent of the appointments available across its healthcare system.

Across the system? So if a location in Podunk, NY, has openings, people waiting in Sante Fe, NM, are supposed to take those appointment slots?

[Fishrrman]

From the article:
"VA documents also show there are currently 184,520 veterans across the nation waiting longer than 30 days for an appointment and more than 45,000 new veteran patients waiting more than 90 days. Internal VA documents also indicate 479,239 veterans nationwide are waiting for physician requested follow-up appointments over 30 days for the period July to September 2017."

When Bernie Sanders and his legions start yelping for "single payer", this is the example that should be used as the counter-argument.

It should be pointed out to them that this is "the example" of an American single-payer healthcare system in action.

... Not that such an example will register with them, because of course it won't.
But it just might with enough rank-and-file Americans who will raise enough noise so that such a system won't be easily passed by Congress.