WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) today announced its commitment to extend debt relief to Veterans adversely impacted by COVID-19 to the end of 2020 by suspending certain debt collection actions.

The department recognizes Veterans and beneficiaries are still being greatly impacted by the coronavirus prompting the extension of financial relief.

“Veterans and their families should be focused on their health and safety during the pandemic,” said VA Secretary Robert Wilkie. “VA is taking action to give those with pending debts greater flexibility during these challenging times.”

VA is suspending all actions on Veteran debts under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Treasury Department. This includes the suspension of collection action or extending repayment terms on preexisting VA debts, whichever the Veteran prefers.

For benefit debts, Veterans should contact the VA Debt Management Center at 1-800-827-0648.

For health care debts, Veterans should contact the Health Resource Center at 1-866-400-1238 or https://www.pay.gov for payments.

Reporters and media outlets with questions or comments should contact the Office of Media Relations at vapublicaffairs@va.gov

Veterans with questions about their health care and benefits (including GI Bill). Questions, updates and documents can be submitted online.

Contact us online through Ask VA

Veterans can also use our chatbot to get information about VA benefits and services. The chatbot won’t connect you with a person, but it can show you where to go on VA.gov to find answers to some common questions.

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