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VA Dedicates New Office at Ft. Bragg

August 2, 2007

Facility Will Ensure Quicker VA Benefits for Veterans

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – To provide easier access for soldiers at Ft. Bragg to benefits offered by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), especially programs for transitioning service members, VA and Ft. Bragg have opened a newly expanded facility at the post’s Soldier Support Center.

Dedication of the facility, called a Benefits Delivery Office, was held August 1 at Building 4-2843 on Normandy Drive. The new office replaces an office on Woodruff Street that VA opened in 1998.

"VA is absolutely committed to ensure that military members have a seamless transition from active duty to VA's benefits and health care systems," said Ronald Aument, VA’s Deputy Under Secretary for Benefits. "This new office helps us fulfill that commitment." Aument was the keynote speaker at the dedication ceremony.

In addition to Fort Bragg, VA operates benefits offices on Camp Lejeune Marine Corps Base and New River Marine Corps Air Station, with services provided at Cherry Point Marine Corps Air Station and Seymour Johnson Air Force Base. VA operates 140 offices on military installations as part of its Benefits Delivery at Discharge program.

Among the services offered by the VA facility at Ft. Bragg:

* Benefits counselors will coordinate with the Warrior Transition Battalion at Womack Medical Center and the VA Medical Center in Fayetteville to ensure that the most severely injured soldiers continue to receive the highest level of care as they leave active duty.
* Staff at the VA office can explain to separating service members the full range of health care, disability, home loan, vocational and educational benefits offered by VA.
* VA already provides assistance with briefings conducted by the Transition Assistance Program (TAP) and Army Career Alumni Program (ACAP).
* For those within six months of separation, VA can help file a claim for benefits and provide a medical examination to record any disabilities. For those eligible for rehabilitation assistance, VA counselors can meet with the separating service member to plan a program of education and training that will help them return to productive employment after discharge.

"We are thrilled to have this new location where we can meet with soldiers and airmen before their discharge, and provide them information and assistance on VA benefits," said John Montgomery, Director of VA’s Winston-Salem Regional Office. "Prior to this, we had to send soldiers to Fayetteville for medical exams and to Spring Lake for vocational rehabilitation counseling. This new office allows us to provide true one-stop service to these deserving men and women."

The Benefits Delivery Office is open from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm weekdays. Information on VA benefits can also be obtained by calling toll-free 1-800-827-1000, or by visiting the VA website at www.va.gov. 

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Larry Scott  --