AMA Spotlights Tech Slashing VA Community Care Wait Times

By Stephanie Kelly

ARLINGTON, Va. – May 06, 2026 – The American Medical Association (AMA) has cast a spotlight on a technology designed to fix one of the most persistent frustrations in veteran healthcare: the often long and arduous process of scheduling an appointment. New guidance from the nation's largest physician association highlights Enterprise Patient Scheduling (EPS), a platform powered by WellHive technology, as a key tool in accelerating access to community care for U.S. veterans.

The guidance, published in the AMA's "Advocating for veterans' health" series, reinforces what the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and WellHive have been demonstrating in the field. The system enables VA staff to book appointments for veterans directly into the existing scheduling systems of community-based medical providers, replacing a manual process bogged down by phone calls and faxes.

Tackling a Systemic Challenge

For years, the VA's community care program, which allows veterans to seek care outside the VA system, has been plagued by scheduling delays. Government Accountability Office (GAO) and VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) reports have repeatedly documented systemic issues, with the time from a referral being issued to an appointment being made often stretching into weeks or even months. One 2024 OIG report found that at a single medical center, scheduling a community care appointment averaged more than 45 days.

This administrative friction creates a significant barrier between a veteran's need for care and their ability to receive it. The traditional process required VA schedulers to manually contact provider offices, coordinate availability, and transmit referral information, a workflow that could take hours or days for a single appointment.

WellHive's EPS technology is designed to dismantle this bottleneck. Currently deployed at 140 VA medical centers and serving over 7 million veterans, the platform has dramatically reduced scheduling time. On average, an appointment that once took days to confirm can now be scheduled in less than seven minutes.

"The AMA has put into clear, practical terms what WellHive and the VA have been proving in the field: EPS makes it easier to move Veterans from referral to confirmed community care appointment," said Chris Bickell, Chief Executive Officer of WellHive, in a statement responding to the AMA's guidance.

A Technological Bridge for Veteran Care

At its core, the EPS platform acts as a secure technological bridge between two distinct worlds: the federal VA healthcare system and the vast network of commercial healthcare providers. It allows VA schedulers to view pre-approved, available appointment slots from participating community providers and book them in real-time.

This integration is a key feature. Rather than forcing providers to adopt a new, standalone portal, WellHive's technology is designed to work with over 150 different existing Electronic Health Record (EHR) and practice management systems. The system also automatically embeds the VA's referral authorization number into the provider's schedule, ensuring that billing and administrative information are connected from the outset.

The platform's reach is substantial, connecting VA schedulers to a network of over 27,000 community providers across more than 75 medical specialties. This network is poised for further growth, with the VA and WellHive actively working to onboard thousands more providers throughout 2026.

Security and Trust in a Digital Age

Handling sensitive veteran health information requires the highest level of data security, a standard WellHive addresses with its FedRAMP High authorization. The Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) is the U.S. government's standardized approach to security for cloud services. The "High" impact level is the most rigorous, reserved for the government's most sensitive, unclassified data in cloud computing environments.

Achieving this certification means WellHive's infrastructure meets 421 stringent security controls, providing a level of protection that goes beyond standard industry requirements like HIPAA. This ensures that as veteran health data moves between the VA and community providers, it is protected against breaches and unauthorized access. This security framework is a critical component of building trust among both government partners and private-sector physicians, assuring them that patient data is handled with the utmost care.

Reducing Friction for Community Providers

A major hurdle in integrating community care has always been the administrative burden placed on provider offices. WellHive's approach directly addresses this by creating a system that benefits physicians as much as it does patients. Participation in the EPS program is free for providers, removing any financial barrier to entry.

Crucially, the system respects provider autonomy. Practices retain full control over their schedules, choosing exactly which appointment slots and how much availability they wish to share with the VA. This avoids the common provider complaint of external systems disrupting internal workflows.

"The power of EPS is that it does not ask physicians to rip and replace their workflows," Bickell noted. "It meets practices where they are. WellHive's technology connects VA demand with community provider supply in a way that is operationally simple, scalable, and respectful of current provider workflows."

This focus on a low-friction, high-value proposition has been key to growing the provider network. By simplifying the process of serving veterans, the platform helps make participation in the VA's community care network a more attractive and sustainable option for private practices.

The Road Ahead: Scalability and Partnerships

With the system now established across the VA's national footprint, WellHive is looking to expand its impact through strategic partnerships. Collaborations with health-tech companies like Zocdoc and Kyruus are broadening the available network of providers and enhancing care navigation tools. A recent partnership with Grow Therapy specifically targets the critical need for mental and behavioral healthcare, integrating real-time scheduling with a network of specialized providers.

While the technology has received praise from users within the VA, the path to full, seamless integration is not without complexity. The expansion and funding of such programs can be subject to federal budgetary cycles and administrative priorities, which can influence the pace of future rollouts. Nonetheless, the endorsement from the AMA signals a powerful validation of the model.

By focusing on the critical first step of getting an appointment scheduled, EPS is helping to fulfill the promise of community care, ensuring that a referral translates into timely access for the nation's veterans. The platform represents a significant step forward in using technology to bridge the gap between federal and commercial healthcare, a model that could have implications far beyond the VA.