r/VeteransAffairs

My ex-husband ceased to pay child support as of June of this year for our two teenage kids. I have a pending court case of over 4 months and nothing has been processed. ETA: We have an original court case from our divorce in 2016 that he has not been abiding by. Our original case was that he makes direct payments to me. This case is from another state that he nor I no longer live in so my current state is requiring I open a new court case for full enforcement.
I previously knew I could have an apportionment garnishment but it was never necessary. However, I now see that this is no longer an option as of January 2026. My ex-husband, who is 100 percent disability rated, also is no longer speaking to me since June of this year. My concern is that our oldest turns 18 in about 7 weeks and is a high school senior. I was looking into it today about the VA Form 21-674 and I am wondering what’s the best route to take or if I need my ex-husband to sign anything. I was looking at the form and I saw that my child can sign it himself once he turns 18 which is the age of majority?

One might wonder why I’m even doing this considering my ex-husband has never sent me the VA money he gets per child and he keeps it himself and even moreso now that he’s not giving me any child support. My thought process is I would rather let the VA know what the current school status of my son is as he transitions to college so he is able to receive the Chapter 35 benefits in college.

I guess my questions are should I wait until he turns 18 and have him fill out the form and send it in ourselves even without my ex-husband’s signature? I really don’t care if there’s a gap in the payment because we don’t receive it anyways. Or can I fill this form out now and sign it myself as the guardian of my son? And lastly, I am curious if anyone else has been in my same position with no longer having access to apportionment options? I was told that the state I live in could have the state he lives in garnish his wages, but he was fired from his job in April and his only wages that I know as of now are from the VA. I was also told that the state cannot garnish VA wages directly since it’s a protected benefit. Can I call the VA line myself since I’m not a veteran? I did send messages to my ex-husband for the first time in over three months today as I was letting the states handle the child support aspect and today I mentioned to him about this situation with our son turning 18 but he is not responding to me and I do not suspect he will. It is my understanding that his new wife has forbidden him from being in contact with me. We have maintained a great coparenting relationship for the past 13 years prior to all this which is why I never had child support going through the courts.

Has anyone been successful in getting an increase from 50% to 100% for a mental health rating?

Greetings…

I’ve been trying to seek VA Health Care for months with no sucess. I’ve been told I would get a call for a new patient appointment, but nothing.

They want me to travel over 3 hours to a main hospital it seems like instead of being able to get localized care. I understand the local clinic may not have enough providers, but I’m paying out of pocket for covered expenses, without the capability to drive 3 hours for different appointments one way realistically.

Is there a program where I can see a Civilian Provider that is accredited through the VA for health care?

Hey there! I flew out of state yesterday to go visit my dad and was rushing to get to the airport and left without my medication. Its a weekend. My MH provider only works Tuesday's & Thursday's. I called my home VA pharmacies 24/7 number and they said without a doctor to approve it, they cannot send me a 7 day supply to a pharmacy where I am at. The closest VA hospital to my dad's that has a pharmacy is 3 hours away. What are my options to get a 7 day supply of 1 prescription (venlafaxine) sent to a pharmacy where my dad lives without having to spend 6 hours round trip in a vehicle?

ETA: After 2 phone calls to the VA, I ended up going to a local civilian walk-in clinic that a VA employee told me would work with Optum and they told me to tell them I am there to utilize the Mission Act. The lady on the phone also told me what pharmacies were options to use and gave me all the numbers I would need for the VA to be billed. Much more helpful VA employee today!

Hello, I had to go to a Tanner ER cause the VA was too far. I already called the VA within the 72 hour window to report the ER visit so they can cover the ER visit and they said they didn’t need me to do anything on my end, is that true ? I’m still getting the Tanner bills sent to me which is understandable but I’m wondering if I need to call the VA to check on the status of the case to make sure they are still covering it ? Or will they reach out to me once they cover everything ? I’m looking for someone who has had to submit a case to the VA to get their ER visit covered to see how the process is. Thank you.

I graduated with my bachelors through VR&E on May 6 and was trying to find employment. Upon graduation, my counselor’s instructions required three job searches per week for 30 days as well as two forms which needed to be filled out. I had some questions about the forms which initiated this chain of events, delay after delay, and eventually a forced decision to attend graduate school and quit my job search so I can continue getting paid. Due to this, I was denied the 2 EAA payments based on an incorrectly filled out job search log which wasn’t brought to me attention until months later. Please read the full story before commenting.

Four documented stretches:
April 19–June 24: 66 days. I asked what identifying numbers to use on the forms and reiterated the unresolved issue in at least 10 follow-up messages. Some replies reminded me to submit forms without answering the question. I eventually found the information myself and submitted the forms and log.

June 24–July 6: 12 days and four follow-ups asking whether everything was received/correct. I was then told to resubmit through eVA and did so immediately.

July 8–August 3: another 26 days and four follow-ups after specifically asking whether my existing log satisfied the requirements. The July 8 instructions also listed a first-payment date of July 3—already past. By August, I was being told the log was inadequate. At this point the completed job search log was in their possession since June 24th.

I contacted another VA employee, called regional and field offices on different days and at different business hours, and repeatedly got voicemail. I finally reached an out-of-state office that directed me to Ask VA. A national hotline complaint eventually got a supervisor to review my case. Eventually, supervisors stated that the EAA is being denied because it was not filled out correctly and also informed me that my current GI bill usage for graduate school is blocked because my VR&E status was still active. At this point I was given an ultimatum. Drop of of school and pursue an aggressive job search/receive the payments, or accept the denial and continue my school. They stated if I chose to accept the denial, I can file an appeal(it most likely wont work because the denial is legitimate based on the job search log actually being incorrect as stated). My biggest concern at this point was having my bills paid. I am reliant on the housing allowance with the GI bill for this and due to this, I opted to accept the denial so I can get my VR&E file closed and have my GI bill approved ASAP.

August 26–September 25: another 30 days and three follow-ups after requesting VR&E closure to access my GI Bill, before a supervisor reported sending Education clearance.

Graduate school was a backup, not my preferred outcome. With no job and no timely guidance before I had to make an enrollment decision, I felt these delays forced my hand. Had I received timely feedback, corrected the deficiencies, and secured suitable employment, I would have chosen work instead. Once I committed to full-time graduate school, I stopped job searching.

I acknowledge my log may not establish the require qualifying period. But I submitted it in June and repeatedly asked what needed correcting. My argument is about the lost opportunity to address that, not that silence automatically meant approval.
My GI Bill is now active. I’m still awaiting the promised EAA denial letter and am only disputing the earlier period.

Has anyone successfully appealed a similar EAA decision or pursued equitable relief under 38 U.S.C. §503? Would a VSO or contacting a congressman help? The 2 EAA payments were going to support my move to a new school and help me get established as I started my graduated program if I didn’t get employment. Thankfully I am now actively enrolled in the GI bill and my housing is covered but if it is at all possible that I have a case here, I could really use those EAA payments as I’ve incurred a lot of credit card debt with my move due to never receiving the payments to cover the expenses. I have the email history saved and want realistic advice. My argument here is that these delays are unacceptable and unprofessional, as well as the clear ignorance communicated to me in emails which didn’t address my questions properly and the clear miscommunication between supervisors/counselors/other VA entities. Is there anything at all I can do here to get those 2 payments? Is there any program I qualify for to maybe compensate me in some way for this? I’m grateful my GI bill is approved now and that solved the major issue but getting access to those 2 payments would really help me out.