The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced, March 3, a number of actions to provide Veterans with financial, benefits and claims help amid VA’s COVID-19 response.
The financial relief actions include the following until further notice:
- Suspending all actions on Veteran debts under the jurisdiction of the Treasury Department.
- Suspending collection action or extending repayment terms on preexisting VA debts, as the Veteran prefers.
For benefit debts, Veterans can contact the VA Debt Management Center at 1-800-827-0648 to make arrangements.
For health care debts, Veterans can contact the Health Resource Center at 1-888-827-4817 to make arrangements.
The benefits and claims relief actions include giving Veterans the option to submit their paperwork late for the following actions:
- perfecting claims
- challenging adverse decisions
- submitting Notices of Disagreement
- submitting Substantive Appeals
- responding to Supplemental Statements of the Case
Veterans requesting claim extensions can simply submit them with any late-filed paperwork and Veterans do not have to proactively request an extension in advance. For added convenience, VA will also accept typed/digital signatures instead of wet signatures on its forms. Those with questions can call 1-800-827-1000.
For Veterans who have been diagnosed with COVID-19 and need immediate action on their appeals, as opposed to a filing extension, the Board of Veterans’ Appeals will Advance their appeal on Docket (AOD). Click here to find out how to file for AOD and what documentation is required.