Other Veteran Benefits – Summary
The Department of Veteran Affairs is the third largest agency in the federal government, smaller than only the Departments of Defense and Postal Services. It is entirely supportive of its veterans and their families, doing good, and always trying to do better. It is much criticized. Many of its programs are not effectively accessed by those it is designed to help.
There are many reasons for this: the VA is, after all, a large bureaucracy; many rumors and opinions circulate to its detriment; and many Americans would prefer not to utilize its services, for a variety of reasons. This is a mistake. The benefits are provided for the qualified veteran, and they should be used.
The VA has 365 million employees. In claims, an estimated 65% are for service-related disabilities. In dealing with long-term care issues, you are not in the Department’s work mainstream. However, much is increasingly becoming available online, and the procedures are improving steadily.
This growing set of benefits are accessible at many levels. There is always the federal level, with offices in every state. There is the state-wide level in every state, together with a wide variety of county offices.
Additionally, in each state there are numerous veteran organizations which, despite their voluntary nature, assist many people on a daily basis in ways that go far beyond any statutory benefits, and they are closely connected to their counterparts in other states. There are probably very few needs of any kind that have not surfaced in these organizations at one time or another, and found concrete help.
Word-of-mouth can be a good way to begin exploring what is available to meet your needs, and go where that leads. Never hesitate to contact the state-level Commissioner’s Office directly, and obtain directions for further pursuit of your sources.
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