By CHRISTOPHER QUINN | The Atlanta Journal-Constitution | Published: May 5, 2021 ATLANTA (Tribune News Service) A Veterans Affairs system to quicken access to health care by sending military veterans to private doctors is showing backlogs and strains in Atlanta. The number of North Georgia veterans who had not gotten a response from the Atlanta VA Health Care System more than 30 days after applying for such help ballooned from about 6,700 last September to more than 18,000 in early May, according to an internal VA document reviewed by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Also stacking up: The total number of area veterans who have applied for an outside doctor or have seen one and are waiting for VA staff to collect all the test results and paperwork to close out the case. There were 25,000 of them last September. There are more than 37,000 now, according to another internal VA document reviewed by the AJC.