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Careers: Military--Army, Navy, Airforce, Marines, Coast Guard/RE 4 E discharge
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Question
My husband served 14 years in the Navy and would have liked to continue. Unfortunately, in 1994, it was difficult to get ahead as a Chief and he left the Navy to stay with his family. He is now in need of help for substance abuse and I was wondering if our local VA Hospital would be able to help. He said that because he left during the Clinton administration, he gave up his right to future VA benefits. Is this true? Will we be unable to get help from the VA hospital? Thank you in advance for your help and advice.
Hi Rita,
Your husband is mistaken. Leaving during a certain presidential administration has no bearing on VA benefits.
All veterans are eligible for VA medical care (including drug/alcohol treatment and counseling), if they meet the following two conditions:
(1) They must either have an honorable, or General (under honorable conditions) discharge. Those with an other than honorable or bad conduct discharge (issued by a Special Court Martial), must be approved by the VA before being eligible. Those with a dishonorable discharge, or a bad conduct discharge (issued by a General Court-Martial) are ineligible for benefits.
(2) The VA must determine that they have a medical or mental condition which was either caused by military service, or made worse by military service.
I should not, in regard to item #2, that it's "technically possible" for a veteran who doesn't have a medical condition which is "service-connected" to receive medical care from the VA, but the VA has limited resources (manpower and funding), and these folks are generally very low priority, making receiving medical care from the VA very unlikely.
For complete details, visit the VA website at: http://www.va.gov or pick up a copy of my book, "VA Benefits for Dummies."
For more information about the United States Military, feel free to visit my US Military information site at: http://usmilitary.about.com
Hope this helps!
Rod Powers
About.com US Military Guide
http://usmilitary.about.com
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| Rating(1-10) | Knowledgeability = 10 | Clarity of Response = 10 | Politeness = 10 |
| Comment | Thank you so much for your rapid response... we are heading to the hospital right now and I am praying they take him in. | ||
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Answers by Expert:
Rod Powers
Expertise
Rod Powers is considered one of the premire experts about U.S. Military career information on the planet. He has more than 30,000 articles about U.S. Military career information on the About.com U.S. Military Careers Information website at: http://usmilitary.about.com. Additionally, he is the author of "ASVAB for Dummies," "ASVAB AFQT for Dummies," (available in Dec 2009), and "Veteran Benefits for Dummies," all published by Wiley Publishing. He is also the author of "Barrons' Guide to Officer Candidate School Tests," published by Barron's Educational Series.
Experience
Rod Powers is a retired Air Force first sergeant, with 23 years of active duty service, 11 of those years as an Air Force First Sergeant. He has helped thousands of military members, recruits, and military applicants since he took over the About.com U.S Military Careers Information site in 1999. He has a reputation for "telling it like it is," so questions may not be answered based on "what you want to hear," but will be answered based of the bast available information, concerning the service/situation.
Education/Credentials
Rod is a distinguished graduate of the Air Force Noncommissioned Officers Academy, the Air Force Senior Noncommissioned Officer Academy, and the Air Force First Sergeant Academy. He also holds an Associates Degree in Personnel Administration from the Community College of the Air Force (CCAF).
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