Veterans Administration's Outreach Efforts for Incarcerated Veterans

The Veterans Administration (VA) is responsible for actively seeking out veterans eligible for benefits, providing them with information, and helping them in applying for benefits. Although eligibility may depend on such factors as disability or income, the fact that some veterans are, or have been, in prison does not alter their eligibility for and receipt of benefits. A VA official estimated that there are some 60,000 veterans in Federal and state penal institutions and the VA has implemented an outreach program to inform these veterans of the benefits available to them. Generally, the outreach program has carried a low priority among VA programs. Despite VA directives targeting incarcerated veterans for special attention, the outreach program has not been consistently emphasized within VA. According to one prison official, having various groups visit prisons and attempt to assist veterans has led to confusion. In some cases duplicate services are provided and veterans' problems are not resolved. Literature passed to the incarcerated veterans is often inconsistent and misleading. The outreach program needs attention and improvement.