Veteran’s

Resource Guide

"The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in
any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to
how they perceive veterans of early wars were treated and
appreciated by our nation."

- George Washington
Dear Veteran,

Thank you for your service. You exemplify what is great about our nation: service, sacrifice, and honor. It is a
privilege to represent you in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Fortunately, Congress has taken a number of steps in the last several years to honor the service you have given
our nation, creating new programs, opportunities, and benefits and enhancing existing ones. Navigating the
maze of programs, and even learning where to find information can be a challenge. In that light, I am please to
offer this resource guide as a starting point in your search for the services that will be most beneficial to your
in your life after your service. Realizing every service member is unique, you may find that this guide falls
short, in which case I would invite you to contact anyone of my offices below, where a staff member will be
more than happy to address your issue and offer a helping hand.

When I was selected as lead Republican on the House Armed Services Committee, I committed to doing all I
could to support our military, including those that have transitioned in a new phase in their life and taken off
the uniform for the last time. Good luck in your endeavors, and God bless you for your service.

Sincerely,

Howard P. “Buck” McKeon

Member of Congress
 Table of Contents

1. Letter of Welcome

2. Regional VA Facilities

3. Important Points of Contact

4. Benefit Resources and Information

 Regional VA Facility Locations

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Benefits and Services Available

VA provides a wide range of benefits including, Disability, Education and Training, Vocational
Rehabilitation and Employment, Home Loan Guaranty, Dependant and Survivor Benefits, Medical
Treatment, Life Insurance and Burial Benefits. The goal of this document is to provide an at-a-glance
description of VA benefits, as well as contact phone numbers and locations. The VA website www.va.gov
offers more detail and a national hotline can be reached at 1-800-827-1000.

VA Structure
The Department of Veterans Affairs is structured into three main service lines which provide the
following benefits:

•Veterans Benefits Administration

–All VA benefits - Compensation, Education, Home Loan Guaranty, etc.

–Administered by VA Regional Office

•Veterans Health Administration

–All VA health care services

–Administered by VA Medical Ctrs, Ambulatory Care & Community Based Outpatient Clinics, etc.
–Locate a Medical Facility.

•National Cemetery Administration

–National and State Veterans Cemeteries

–Headstones , Markers & Presidential Memorial Certificates
–Request burial in a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) national cemetery
Eligibility for VA Benefits
You may be eligible for VA benefits if you are a:
Veteran, Veteran's dependent
Surviving spouse, child or parent of a deceased Veteran
Uniformed service member

How to Apply for VA Benefits

VA has several ways to apply for your benefits depending on your category and status.

o The Pre-Discharge Program

A joint VA and Department of Defense (DoD) program that affords service members the
opportunity to file claims for disability compensation up to 180 days prior to separation or
retirement from active duty or full time National Guard or Reserve duty (Titles 10 and 32).
Read more on the Pre-Discharge Program.

o The VONAPP (Veterans On Line Application)

The VONAPP web site is an official VA web site that enables service members, veterans and
their beneficiaries, and other designated individuals to apply for benefits using the Internet.
It can be found at http://vabenefits.vba.va.gov/vonapp/main.asp.

o Apply at your Local Regional Offices

VA regional offices can assist you with filing the appropriate VA forms. In addition VSO's
(Veteran Service Organizations) can assist you as well by answering general question and
even petitioning on your behalf for services they believe you are qualified to receive.

Information and Assistance

For more information about specific benefits, visit your nearest VA regional office or call one of our toll-
free numbers.

Toll-Free Services
Benefits Information & Assistance 800-827-1000
Health Care 877-222-8387
Education & Training 888-442-4551
VA Life Insurance 800-669-8477
Office of SGLI 800-419-1473
CHAMPVA 800-733-8387
Helpline (Agent Orange & Gulf War) 800-749-8387
Direct Deposit 877-838-2778
Headstones (status of claims only) 800-697-6947
Telecommunication Device for Deaf (TDD) 800-829-4833
Local Regional Offices
Victorville VA Vet Center
15095 Amargosa Rd, Suite 107
Victorville, CA 92394
Phone: 760-955-9703
Fax: 760-241-7828

Normal working hours are 8:00am to 4:30pm Monday through Friday. In an effort to better serve the
veteran and family members, upon request Vet Centers will provide services after normal work hours
and/or on weekends.

Antelope Valley VA Vet Center

38925 Trade Center Drive, Suite J
Palmdale, CA 93551
Phone: 661-267-1026
Fax: 661-267-2045

Normal working hours are 8:00am to 4:30pm Monday through Friday. In an effort to better serve the
veteran and family members, upon request Vet Centers will provide services after normal work hours
and/or on weekends.

Reno VA Vet Center

1155 W. 4th Street Suite 101
Reno, NV 89503
Phone: 775-323-1294
Fax: 775-322-8123

Normal working hours are 8:00am to 4:30pm Monday through Friday. In an effort to better serve the
veteran and family members, upon request Vet Centers will provide services after normal work hours
and/or on weekends.

Lancaster Community Based Outpatient Clinic

547 West Lancaster Boulevard
Lancaster, CA 93536
Phone: 661-729-8655 Or 661-729-8655
Fax: 661-729-8656

Parent Facility: Greater Los Angeles VAMC

Phone: (310) 478-3711 or (800) 952-4852
Victorville Community Based Outpatient Clinic
12138 Industrial Boulevard, Suite 120
Victorville, CA 92392
Phone: 760-951-2599

Parent Facility: Loma Linda VAMC

Phone: (909) 825-7084 or (800) 741-8387

For any questions contact VA at 1-877-222-VETS (8387) Monday through Friday, between the hours of 8
AM and 8 PM Eastern Time.

VA Health Care Overview

VA provides a Medical Benefits Package to all enrolled Veterans. This comprehensive plan provides a full
range of preventive outpatient and inpatient services within VA health care system. Also, once you
enroll in the VA’s health care system, you can be seen at any VA facility across the country.

VA operates an annual enrollment system that helps to manage the provision of health care by
providing an overall population of beneficiaries. Additionally, the enrollment system ensures that
Veterans who are eligible can get care and ensures that care is given to Veterans who are eligible. VA
applies a variety of factors in determining Veterans’ eligibility for enrollment, but once a Veteran is
enrolled, that Veteran remains enrolled in the VA health care system.

Do You Qualify? There are many ways that a Veteran may qualify to receive top-notch VA health care at
over 1,400 medical centers and clinics across the nation. The VA has highly trained physicians and
clinicians that allow the VA to address many specialties. You may also be able to receive assistance with
prescription medication. VA health care is portable. Once enrolled, you may receive care at your home
facility as well as the nearest VA facility while traveling. If you are a Veteran, and you want low-cost,
high-quality health care, please take a moment to see if you qualify.

A new online version of the VA Application for Health Benefits, VA Form 10-10EZ, is now available. The
new and improved online form makes it easier for Veterans to complete the form. Also, Veterans will
now be able to save a partially completed form on their computer, and return to finish it at a later time.
Previously a Veteran was required to start all over if they were unable to finish an application because of
an interruption or needing time to find additional documents. For more information, go to the Improved
Online 10-10EZ application.

With the recent Priority Group 8 Enrollment Relaxation, and other ongoing evaluation and changes by
VA, you may now be eligible to enroll with VA for health care services. You can apply for care by
completing VA Form 10-10EZ, Application for Health Benefits, and VA will let you know what health care
benefits you may qualify for.

If you need more assistance, you may call VA toll free at 1-877-222-VETS (8387), Monday through
Friday, between 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m., Eastern Time.
All Veterans are Potentially Eligible
You may be eligible! Below are some of the basic factors that go into determining your eligibility for
health benefits:

Eligibility for most veterans’ health care benefits is based solely on active military service in the Army,
Navy, Air Force, Marines, or Coast Guard (or Merchant Marines during WW II), and discharged under
other than dishonorable conditions.

Reservists and National Guard members who were called to active duty by a Federal Executive Order
may qualify for VA health care benefits. Returning service members, including Reservists and National
Guard members who served on active duty in a theater of combat operations have special eligibility for
hospital care, medical services, and nursing home care for five years following discharge from active
duty.

Health Care eligibility is not just for those who served in combat, other groups may be eligible for some
health benefits.

Veteran’s health care is not just for service-connected injuries or medical conditions, and is provided to
both men and women.

VA Extends “Agent Orange Benefits” to More Veterans

VA announced recently that it has established a service connection to three diseases linked to herbicide
Agent Orange use during the Vietnam War: B cell leukemias; Parkinson’s disease; and ischemic heart
disease. The addition of these “presumed” illnesses for Agent Orange simplifies and speeds up the
application process for benefits for Veterans. For more information, see the VA Extends “Agent Orange”
Benefits to More Veterans news release.

Priority Group 8 Enrollment Relaxation Changes

In order to ensure the availability of quality and timely health care to veterans with service connected
conditions, special authority based on military service, low income, and those with special health care
needs, in January 2003 VA made the difficult decision to stop enrolling new Priority Group 8 (high
income) veterans whose income exceeded VA Income Thresholds.

The new regulations went into effect on June 15, 2009 and enable the Department of Veterans Affairs
(VA) to relax income restrictions on enrollment for health benefits. While this new provision does not
remove consideration of income, it does increase income thresholds. You may be eligible for enrollment
under this new provision.

Benefits on the Go

VA enrollment allows health care benefits to become portable throughout the entire VA system.
Enrolled veterans who are traveling or who spend time away from their primary treatment facility may
obtain care at any VA health care facility across the country without the worry of having to reapply.
Online Benefit Resources
The Federal Guidebook to Benefits for Veterans, Dependents, and Survivors can be access and
downloaded at this website: http://www1.va.gov/opa/publications/benefits_book/federal_benefits.pdf

An all purpose page with links for all VA related Benefits and Compensation can be found at
http://www.nationalresourcedirectory.gov/benefits_and_compensation

Other important resource websites:

Burial and Memorial Benefits www.cem.va.gov

Burial benefits available include a gravesite in any of our 131 national cemeteries with available space,
opening and closing of the grave, perpetual care, a Government headstone or marker, a burial flag,
and a Presidential Memorial Certificate, at no cost to the family. Some Veterans may also be eligible
for Burial Allowances. Cremated remains are buried or inurned in national cemeteries in the same
manner and with the same honors as casketed remains.

CHAMPVA http://www4.va.gov/hac/forbeneficiaries/champva/champva.asp

The Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA) is a
comprehensive health care program in which the VA shares the cost of covered health care services and
supplies with eligible beneficiaries. The program is administered by Health Administration Center and
our offices are located in Denver, Colorado.

Due to the similarity between CHAMPVA and the Department of Defense (DoD) TRICARE program
(sometimes referred to by its old name, CHAMPUS) the two are often mistaken for each other.
CHAMPVA is a Department of Veterans Affairs program whereas TRICARE is a regionally managed health
care program for active duty and retired members of the uniformed services, their families, and
survivors.
In some cases a veterans may look to be eligible for both/either program on paper. However, if you are
a military retiree, or the spouse of a veteran who was killed in action, you are and will always be a
TRICARE beneficiary, you can´t choose between the two.

Education Benefits www.gibill.va.gov

The Post-9/11 GI Bill provides financial support for education and housing to individuals with at least 90
days of aggregate service on or after September 11, 2001, or individuals discharged with a service-
connected disability after 30 days. You must have received an honorable discharge to be eligible for the
Post-9/11 GI Bill.

Federal Jobs www.usajobs.opm.gov

The Federal Government has a long and outstanding record of employing veterans. There are laws
providing Veterans' preference and special appointing authorities for veterans, as well as the fact that
agencies recognize that hiring veterans is just good business. Federal service provides a means for
veterans to continue their noble service to this country.

Health Care Eligibility www.va.gov/healtheligibility

Do You Qualify? There are many ways that a Veteran may qualify to receive top-notch VA health care at
over 1,400 medical centers and clinics across the nation. The VA has highly trained physicians and
clinicians that allow the VA to address many specialties. You may also be able to receive assistance with
prescription medication. VA health care is portable. Once enrolled, you may receive care at your home
facility as well as the nearest VA facility while traveling.

Home Loan Guaranty www.homeloans.va.gov

Who's Eligible for a VA-Backed Loan?

Veterans
Active duty personnel
Reservists/National Guard members
Some surviving spouses

Life Insurance www.insurance.va.gov

Our insurance programs were developed to provide insurance benefits for veterans and service
members who may not be able to get insurance from private companies because of the extra risks
involved in military service, or a service connected disability.

Memorial Certificate Program www.cem.va.gov/pmc.asp

A Presidential Memorial Certificate (PMC) is an engraved paper certificate, signed by the current
President, to honor the memory of honorably discharged deceased Veterans.
Mental Health www.mentalhealth.va.gov

Vet Centers provide a broad range of counseling and outreach services to our combat Veterans and their
family members, assisting them towards successful post-war adjustment in their communities.

My HealtheVet www.myhealth.va.gov

My HealtheVet is a free, online Personal Health Record that empowers Veterans to become informed
partners in their health care. With My HealtheVet, America’s Veterans can access trusted, secure, and
current health and benefits information as well as record, track and store important health and military
history information at their convenience. Veterans who are enrolled in a VA facility can refill their VA
prescriptions and more

National Resource Directory www.nationalresourcedirectory.gov

The National Resource Directory (NRD) provides access to services and resources at the national, state
and local levels that support recovery, rehabilitation and community reintegration.
Prosthetics www.prosthetics.va.gov

VA Prosthetic and Sensory Aids Service (PSAS) is the largest and most comprehensive provider of
prosthetic devices in the world. Although the term "prosthetic device" may suggest images of artificial
limbs, it actually refers to any device that supports or replaces a body part or function. Our mission is to
provide Veterans with the highest quality health care in a courteous and compassionate manner. We
are committed to working with your VA medical team to maximize your independence.

Records www.archives.gov/st-louis/military-personnel

The National Personnel Records Center, Military Personnel Records (NPRC-MPR) is the repository of
millions of military personnel, health, and medical records of discharged and deceased veterans of all
services during the 20th century. NPRC (MPR) also stores medical treatment records of retirees from all
services, as well as records for dependent and other persons treated at naval medical facilities.
Information from the records is made available upon written request (with signature and date) to the
extent allowed by law.

Returning Service members www.oefoif.va.gov

Every VA Medical Center has a team ready to welcome OEF/OIF service members and help coordinate
their care.
Women Veterans www.publichealth.va.gov/womenshealth

At each VA Medical Center nationwide, a Women Veterans Program Manager is designated to assist
women Veterans. She can help coordinate all the services you may need, from primary care to medical
services to Mental Health and Sexual Abuse Counseling. Women Veterans who are interested in
receiving care at VA should contact the nearest VA Medical Center and ask for the Women Veterans
Program Manager.

VA Vet Centers www.vetcenter.va.gov

If you have served in any combat zone, Vet Centers are in your community to help you and your family
with readjustment counseling and outreach services. You've earned these benefits and there is no cost
to you or your family members.

VA Home Page www.va.gov

Homepage of the Veterans Administration

VA Benefit Payment Rates www.vba.va.gov/bln/21/rates

Ensure you get the Benefits you are entitled to

VA Forms www.va.gov/vaform

Easy access to all required forms for your Veterans Benefits

Veterans Employment and Training www.dol.gov/vets

VETS Proudly Serves Veterans and Service Members. We Provide Resources and Expertise to Assist and
Prepare them to Obtain Meaningful Careers, Maximize their Employment Opportunities, and Protect
their Employment Rights.