Published Jun 23, 2026, 3:58 PM EDT
More veterans are learning they may newly qualify under expanded eligibility rules.
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Published Jun 23, 2026, 3:58 PM EDT
More than 125,000 veterans have enrolled in VA health care so far in 2026, the Department of Veterans Affairs announced in May. It was the fastest pace of enrollment the system had seen in years, and the number continues to climb as more veterans learn they may now qualify under expanded eligibility rules put in place by the PACT Act. The VA reached the 100,000-enrollee mark on March 31, faster than it hit that milestone in six of the past seven years. The enrollment wave is being driven in part by expanded outreach and new facilities, and in larger part by a fundamental shift in who is eligible to receive VA health care under the PACT Act, which was signed into law in August 2022 and represented the largest expansion of VA benefits in decades.
