VAntage Point, the official VA blog, will be down July 11 for maintenance. The site redesign will include functional efficiencies, a more modern appearance and full mobile integration.

Users who try to access the site July 11 will be redirected to a page that says the site is undergoing maintenance. The redesign will come online late July 11 or early July 12. As a result, there will be no July 11 Veteran of the Day.

The redesign features a large, prominent photo display within a blog post.

The current version of VAntage Point was brought online several years ago. Since then, publishing technology has vastly improved, necessitating an updated look and mobile accessibility. The newest version will sport an enhanced visual layout and easier-to-read text. A preview of the new layout shows users what the redesigned site will look like.

Other features include a redesigned menu, easier search function, and simpler access to other VA.gov websites – including prominent access to the Veterans Crisis Line.

The redesign and new theme display featured posts with larger images and a snippet of the story.

For the best experience, users should use Microsoft Edge or Google Chrome as their web browser; all modern mobile browsers will work. The new site will not work with Microsoft Internet Explorer. The Internet Explorer 11 desktop application will soon retire and go out of support June 15, 2022.

VAntage Point publishes stories from around VA and the Veteran community. These stories and blog posts include health care topics and services (VHA); non-health benefits (VBA), like education, transition and employment assistance, compensation and pension, life insurance and home loan guaranty; as well as memorial affairs (NCA), #VetResources, VA careers, homelessness, recovery, mental health and messages from the Secretary.

Started in November 2010, the site grew from providing a few dozen stories each month to well over 100 each month. In the past 12 months, VAntage Point garnered more than 30 million page views, a 445.45% increase over 2018’s approximately 5.5 million.

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