Veterans & Military

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U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Publishes Final Rule to Help Veterans Exposed to Agent Orange

Veterans exposed to herbicides while serving in Vietnam and other areas will find it easier to access quality health care and qualify for disability compensation under a final rule published in the Federal Register.  The new rule expands the list of health problems VA will presume to be related to Agent Orange and other herbicide exposures, which will speed up the application process.  VA is adding Parkinson’s disease and ischemic heart disease and expanding chronic lymphocytic leukemia to include all chronic B cell leukemias, such as hairy cell leukemia. 

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Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Services for Blind & Visually Impaired Veterans

The VA provides rehabilitation programs targeting low vision and blind Veterans, and is also aggressively pursuing innovative service delivery models.
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Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Veterans' Educational Assistance Program (VEAP)

Information on VEAP, an education benefit for Veterans who paid into the program while they were in the service.
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Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Vocational Rehabilitation & Employment Program Website

Provides information about Veteran benefits and services administered by VA's Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Service to Veterans, employers and the general public.

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Federal Benefits for Veterans, Dependents & Survivors - 2010 Edition

This booklet contains a summary of the benefits programs provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for which Veterans and their families may be eligible. Eligibility for most VA benefits is based upon discharge from active military service under other than dishonorable conditions. Some VA benefits require service during wartime. Applications for VA benefits can be submitted online. This document can also be downloaded in PDF format in Spanish.

Social Security Administration Disability Benefits for Wounded Warriors

Provides information about Social Security disability benefits, including how to apply and how to expedite processing of disability claims for military Service Members.

Special Benefits for Certain World War II Veterans

Special benefits are available to certain World War II Veterans, including Veterans who served in the active U.S. military from September 16, 1940 - July 24, 1947, and Filipino Veterans who served in the organized military of the Philippines from July 26, 1941 - December 30, 1946 (while those forces were in the service of the U.S. Armed Forces). Download the fact sheet.

Special Monthly Compensation (SMC) for Serious Disabilities

Fact sheet from the VA describing additional compensation for Veterans who, as a result of military service, incurred the loss or loss of use of specific organs or extremities. This link opens a Word document and is also available in Spanish.

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Agent Orange Web Page & Newsletter

Information about Agent Orange, possible health-related problems and VA benefits.  Prior newsletters on Agent Orange, Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses and Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) Hazardous Exposures are also available.  Subscribe to receive future newsletters by e-mail.

VA Makes Access to Health Care & Benefits Easier for Veterans with PTSD

As President Barack Obama announced in his weekly address, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), led by Secretary Shinseki, will begin to make it easier for Veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) to receive the benefits they need. Under the new rule, VA would not require corroboration of a stressor related to fear of hostile military or terrorist activity if a VA doctor confirms that the stressful experience recalled by a Veteran adequately supports a diagnosis of PTSD and the Veteran's symptoms are related to the claimed stressor. More than 400,000 Veterans currently receiving compensation benefits are service-connected for PTSD.

VA Makes Filing Claims Easier & Faster for Veterans

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is reducing the paperwork and speeding up the process for Veterans seeking compensation for disabilities related to their military service. VA has shortened application forms to reduce paperwork for Veterans. The new forms include a shortened VA Form 21-526 for Veterans applying for the first-time to VA for disability compensation or pension benefits and VA Form 21-526b for Veterans seeking increased benefits for conditions already determined by VA to be service-connected.

VA Secretary Seeks Fast Track to Process Claims

VA Secretary Eric K. Shinseki announced that the department will begin an aggressive new initiative to solicit private-sector input on ways to a "fast track" Veterans' claims process for service-connected presumptive illnesses due to Agent Orange exposure during the Vietnam War. The VA hopes to speed up the processing of these claims by switching from a manual process to a more streamlined automated process. About 200,000 Veterans are expected to file disability compensation claims in the next two years under an historic expansion of three new presumptive illnesses announced last year. They affect Veterans who have Parkinson's disease, ischemic heart disease and B-cell leukemias.

VA Warns Veterans of Telephone Prescription Scam

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is warning Veterans not to give credit card numbers over the phone to callers claiming to update VA prescription information. Veteran Service Organizations have brought to VA's attention that callers are misrepresenting the VA to gain personal information over the phone. They say VA recently changed procedures for dispensing prescriptions and ask for the Veteran's credit card number. Veterans with questions about VA services should contact the nearest VA medical center or call, toll-free, 1-877-222-8387.

Vocational Rehabilitation Benefits - 5 Tracks to Employment

Fact sheet from the VA describing the vocational rehabilitation program's five tracks to employment: reemployment, rapid access to employment, self-employment, employment through long-term services and independent living services. This link opens a Word document and is also available in Spanish.