Veterans Affairs

The United States Veterans Affairs

The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is a government-run military veteran benefit system with Cabinet-level status. It is responsible for administering programs of veterans’ benefits for veterans, their families, and survivors.

The benefits provided include disability compensation, pension, education, home loans, life insurance, vocational rehabilitation, survivors’ benefits, medical benefits and burial benefits. It is administered by the United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

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The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) was established on March 15, 1989, succeeding the Veterans Administration.  It is responsible for providing federal benefits to veterans and their families.  Headed by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, VA is the second-largest of the 15 Cabinet departments and operates nationwide programs for health care, financial assistance and burial benefits.

Of the 23.4 million veterans currently alive, nearly three-quarters served during a war or an official period of conflict.  About a quarter of the nation's population is potentially eligible for VA benefits and services because they are veterans, family members or survivors of veterans.

The responsibility to care for veterans, spouses, survivors and dependents can last a long time.  Two children of Civil War veterans still draw VA benefits.  About 184 children and widows of Spanish-American War veterans still receive VA compensation or pensions.

VA's fiscal year 2009 spending is projected to be approximately $93.4 billion, including $40 billion for health care, $46.9 billion for benefits, and $230 million for the national cemetery system.  This is more than a 7 percent increase from the department’s $87.6 billion budget for fiscal year 2009.

Compensation and Pension

Disability compensation is a payment to veterans who are disabled by injury or disease incurred or aggravated during active military service.  Wartime veterans with low incomes who are permanently and totally disabled may be eligible for financial support through VA’s pension program. 

In fiscal year 2008, VA provided $38.9 billion in disability compensation, death compensation and pension to 3.7 million people.  About 3.2 million veterans received disability compensation or pension from VA.  In addition, about 554,700 spouses, children and parents of deceased veterans received VA benefits.  Among them are 170,144 survivors of Vietnam-era veterans and 235,000 survivors of World War II veterans.

Education and Training

Since 1944, when the first GI Bill began, more than 21.8 million veterans, service members and family members have received $83.6 billion in GI Bill benefits for education and training.  The number of GI Bill recipients includes 7.8 million veterans from World War II, 2.4 million from the Korean War and 8.2 million post-Korean and Vietnam-era veterans, plus active duty personnel. 

Since the dependents program was enacted in 1956, VA also has assisted in the education of more than 784,000 dependents of veterans whose deaths or total disabilities were service-connected.  Since the Vietnam-era, there have been approximately 2.7 million veterans, service members, reservists and National Guardsmen who have participated in the Veterans’ Educational Assistance Program (VEAP).  VEAP was established in 1977; the Montgomery GI Bill, in 1985.

In 2008, VA helped pay for the education or training of 336,527 veterans and active-duty personnel, 106,092 reservists and National Guardsmen and 80,079 survivors.