Latest news with #DepartmentofVeteranAffairs
Economic Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Economic Times
Big VA benefits coming in August for US veterans: How much money you will get and when? Check eligibility
NYT News Service The VA has launched the new 2025 rates for the Disability Compensation Rates Millions of veterans in the United States receive benefits from the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) through a variety of financial support programs every month. A large chunk of that money goes to those on disability compensation, which currently supports around 6.2 million people. These monthly payments are not taxed and they go to support veterans with disabilities - either mental or physical - that relate to their VA has launched the new 2025 rates for the Disability Compensation Rates, according to Marca. These are monthly, tax-free benefits show what eligible veterans qualify to receive. At present, the rates are up by 2.5 percent to match the 2025 Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) jump and this move aims to minimize the damages and to keep up with the rising living costs. ALSO READ: Millions of US citizens to receive $1,390 stimulus soon? Check if you qualify and when to expect it Generally, the VA benefits payments come at the end of the month, but the exact date varies. Veterans Guide has confirmed that the August disability payment is scheduled for August 29. Here's a look at full VA benefits schedule for August and for the rest of the year: Friday, August 29, for AugustWednesday, October 1, for September Friday, October 31, for OctoberMonday, December 1, for NovemberWednesday, December 31, for DecemberALSO READ: Why Jessica Radcliffe's Orca 'attack' clip went viral and what your human brain does in moments of shock For single veterans in 2025, a full 100% disability means more than $44,000 a year tax-free. Those with less than 30% get the same each month, no matter their family size. Above 30%, pay rises if there are spouses or dependent elders. Adding a child clearly raises the money. Families with more children get more each month. There are also extra benefits for kids over 18 who attend college. It is key to keep accurate dependent records to maximize benefits. ALSO READ: Seven simple brain exercises to lower your dementia risk For those with a 10% disability rating (the lowest designation) the monthly payment this year is $175.51, regardless of how many dependents are claimed. The rating increases in 10-percentage-point increases up to 100%, with the amount of financial support going up 2025, veterans with a 100% disability rating and no dependents will receive $3,831.30 per month. For those with more severe disabilities, this amount rises for each dependent—whether it's a spouse, child, or parent. In certain cases, Aid and Attendance benefits can also be added, offering extra financial support for help with daily activities or household your Veterans Affairs (VA) disability payment hasn't arrived, you may need to reach out for assistance. You can call the VA benefits hotline at 800-827-1000 between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. (ET), or visit your local VA benefits office to get in-person help. ALSO READ: 9 shocking facts about 'killer whale' Orcas that will leave you surprised Some veterans can be added to get extra compensation on top of their base rate: Aid and attendance: For daily help needs like eating, bathing, or dressing, an extra $196 a month. Housebound status: For those stuck at home with service injuries, an extra $178 a month. These extra payments are meant to give a meaningful support for vets with big and specific medical or mobility challenges. While small, they add over $2,000 a year while still being tax-free. To know your exact benefits based on your family, check the VA's rate page or use resources like disability guide.
USA Today
07-08-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
President Trump to honor 100 Purple Heart recipients at special White House ceremony
Recipients in attendance will include three veterans who sent their Purple Heart medals to Trump last year following the July 2024 assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania. WASHINGTON − President Donald Trump is hosting nearly 100 past Purple Heart recipients at the White House in recognition of veterans wounded in military action ‒ including some who gifted their badges to Trump after he survived an assassination attempt last year. The ceremony, set for 4 p.m. ET Aug. 7 in the White House East Room, coincides with National Purple Heart Day, which commemorates America's oldest military decoration, one that originated under President George Washington in 1782 to honor those killed or injured in combat. Recipients in attendance will include three veterans ‒ Thomas Matteo, Gerald Enter Jr. and John Ford ‒ who sent their Purple Heart medals to Trump last year following the July 13, 2024, assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, when Trump's right ear was grazed by a bullet from a would-be assassin. Also attending will be Chris LaCivita, Trump's 2024 campaign manager and a veteran of the U.S. Marines Corps who received a Purple Heart in 1991 for his service in the Gulf War. The event features a father-son combo, Kevin Willette and Brian Willette, who both received the Purple Heart for their service in Afghanistan. In addition, military specialist Kevin Jensen, who pulled fellow Purple Heart recipient Capt. Sam Brown from a Humvee in Afghanistan that was hit by an explosive device, will be honored. Brown last week was confirmed by the Senate as Trump's under secretary for memorial affairs in the Department of Veteran Affairs. "President Trump cares deeply about honoring our brave men and women in uniform, and today, he will recognize those who have earned this distinction and remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice to protect our freedom," Taylor Rogers, an assistant White House press secretary, said in a statement to USA TODAY. "There is no one more deserving of our gratitude than these great American heroes." Other Purple Heart attendees will include: More than 1.8 million Americans have received the Purple Heart, which was revived in 1932 by Franklin D. Roosevelt's administration marking the 200th anniversary of Washington's birthday. Those who receive the award are given a heart-shaped decoration with a purple background and gold embroidery that features Washington's profile. Trump administration officials set to attend the ceremony include Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan 'Razin' Caine. Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.
The Hill
02-08-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Trump administration revokes Biden era abortion rule for veterans
The Trump administration revoked a Biden era abortion rule on Friday that allows veterans to receive abortions under their medical package. The Department of Veteran Affairs is reversing a 2022 rule that provided access to abortion counseling and abortions to certain pregnant veterans in addition to VA beneficiaries. 'We take this action to ensure that VA provides only needed medical services to our nation's heroes and their families,' the Department wrote in a scheduled release for the Federal Register. Officials said they were seeking to ensure taxpayer dollars weren't used to provide pregnancy terminations. 'As a matter of law, it is without question that VA has the authority to bar provision of abortion services through the VA medical benefits package to veterans,' the release read. 'From 1999 until 2022 that is in fact what VA did. It was not until 2022 when the VA Secretary reversed this course,' they added. The department said they would not prohibit providing abortion care to pregnant women in life-threatening circumstances, including treatment for ectopic pregnancies or miscarriages. GOP lawmakers lauded the move slamming the Biden administration for previous changes. 'It was wrong that the Biden administration violated settled law in 2022 and began offering abortion services through VA. We pushed back hard on this disastrous policy over the last two years to hold the Biden-Harris administration accountable and protect the lives of the unborn,' House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mike Bost (Ill.) and Reps. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (Iowa), Morgan Luttrell (Texas), Derrick Van Orden (Wis.), Keith Self (Texas), and Tom Barrett (Mich.) said in a Friday statement. 'It's simple – taxpayers do not want their hard-earned money spent on paying for abortions – and VA's sole focus should always be providing service-connected health care and benefits to the veterans they serve,' they added. However, others said the shift in policy will harm servicemembers and their families following the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022, eliminating the constitutional right to abortions. Katie O'Connor, senior director of federal abortion policy at the National Women's Law Center, said the effort was a 'direct attack' on those who have served our country. 'At a time when extremist lawmakers are passing cruel abortion bans and restrictions, this move only deepens the crisis those laws have created — stripping veterans of their reproductive freedom and creating even more confusion about where they can turn for care. 'Let me be clear: abortion is health care,' O'Connor said in a Friday statement. 'Veterans already face unique challenges to their health and well-being, including experiencing PTSD, recovering from military sexual trauma, and facing an increased risk of suicide. Banning access to the full range of reproductive services, including abortion, further jeopardizes their health and safety. No one should have to travel hundreds of miles, endure financial hardship, or risk their health just to get the medical care they need. Our veterans deserve better,' she added.
Time of India
08-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Mass layoffs at Veteran Affairs dept soon? Thousands of jobs to be shed by end of this fiscal year
Live Events VA to cut nearly 30,000 jobs (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel The Department of Veteran Affairs has taken a U-turn and has dropped plans to lay off tens of thousands of personnel in August, a news release from the department indicated Monday. It announced on Monday it is walking back plans for mass layoffs at the agency but says it will still shed tens of thousands of jobs by the end of fiscal year 2025, reports CNN. A reduction of 30,000 employees constitutes about 6.2% of the VA's workforce, based on 484,000 total VA employees as of January 1, VA is scrapping those plans for now, but it is on pace to reduce the total number of staffers by nearly 30,000, 'through the federal hiring freeze, deferred resignations, retirements and normal attrition,' the agency said in a news release, adding that those cuts will eliminate 'the need for a large-scale reduction-in-force.'It was reported in March that VA leadership outlined a plan to shed more than 76,000 workers as part of the Trump administration's widespread efforts to reduce the federal workforce. The department originally planned to reduce its staff to 2019 levels, or just under 400, VA said in its release that it had "roughly 484,000 employees on Jan. 1, 2025" — meaning the initial plans would have required the VA to cut upwards of 80,000 for next year, VA press secretary Peter Kasperowicz said, 'VA is not planning to make any other major changes to staffing levels beyond those outlined in the release.'The release insists the reductions 'do not impact Veteran care or benefits.' 'All mission-critical positions are exempt' from the deferred resignations and voluntary early retirements, the agency said.'A department-wide RIF is off the table, but that doesn't mean we're done improving VA. Our review has resulted in a host of new ideas for better serving Veterans that we will continue to pursue,' Collins said in the US Veteran Affairs Department will make two-thirds fewer employee cuts this fiscal year than it first targeted. This means it will reduce staff by about 30,000 rather than 80,000, the agency said, reported news agency the start of the Trump administration, the agency employed about around 4,80,000 and it and expects to end the fiscal year in September with nearly 450,000 staff. Under President Donald Trump's program to downsize the federal government, the agency had planned to reach just under 400,000 employees which attracted widespread condemnation from military veteran groups and agency said in a statement it was on pace to reduce its staff "through the federal hiring freeze, deferred resignations, retirements and normal attrition." It did not say why it no longer needed to make further initial layoff plan was significantly larger than job cuts proposed at other federal agencies — a move that could have backfired politically for Trump, who brands himself as a staunch defender of the U.S. military and veterans. Between January and June, the Department of Veterans Affairs cut nearly 17,000 positions, and it expects nearly 12,000 more employees to leave by September 30, according to the agency.'A department-wide reduction in force is off the table — but that doesn't mean we're done improving the VA,' said VA Secretary Doug Collins in a statement. As of March, nearly 9 million veterans were enrolled in the VA Health Care System.A spokesperson for the VA said in a statement Monday that it spent "nearly four months conducting a holistic review of the department to see what needs to be changed." The department claimed that in recent months, the VA has improved services for veterans, citing "huge drops in the number of Veterans waiting for disability benefits, sizeable increases in claims processing productivity, and extraordinary progress regarding our electronic health record modernization."The spokesperson said the original number of 80,000 staff cuts "got employees thinking outside of the box to come up with new and better ways of serving Veterans," and the "main goal all along has been creating the best possible experiences and outcomes" for veterans and their families.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Benefits resource fair, claims clinic set for Ramsey County vets
Local veterans can learn more about benefits and healthcare options at a Veterans Resource Fair and Claims Clinic on Thursday. The event, held by the Department of Veteran Affairs and the Ramsey County Veterans Service Offices, will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday, June 12, at the Rondo Community Library, 461 Dale St. N., St. Paul. Veterans can speak to representatives from the Minneapolis VA Medical Center, St. Paul Veterans Benefits Administration Regional Office and the Ramsey County Veterans Service. In addition, veterans can work with Veterans Affairs claim processors on disability compensation claims and benefit questions. Walk-ins are welcome but appointments can also be made online at Veterans are asked to bring a copy of their DD214 and any recent VA claim correspondence they may have. Officials say there are nearly 20,000 veterans in Ramsey County. Officials say that 11,000 of them are not using benefits or healthcare they are entitled to have. D-Day veterans return to Normandy to mark 81st anniversary of landings The man whose weather forecast saved the world WWII vets are rock stars in France as they hand over the duty of remembering D-Day Minnesota veterans with PTSD turn to the outdoors to improve mental health Minnesota political leaders emphasize support for veterans at Fort Snelling program
