In one of the largest-ever expansions of Veteran health care, all Veterans exposed to toxins and other hazards during military service - at home or abroad - will be eligible for VA health care beginning March 5

VA News | February 26, 2024

WASHINGTON - Today, VA announced that all Veterans who were exposed to toxins and other hazards while serving in the military - at home or abroad - will be eligible to enroll directly in VA health care beginning March 5, 2024. This means that all Veterans who served in the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, Iraq, Afghanistan, the Global War on Terror, or any other combat zone after 9/11 will be eligible to enroll directly in VA health care without first applying for VA benefits. Additionally, Veterans who never deployed but were exposed to toxins or hazards while training or on active duty in the United States will also be eligible to enroll.

As directed by President Biden, this expansion of VA health care eliminates the phased-in approach called for by the PACT Act — meaning that millions of Veterans are becoming eligible for VA health care up to eight years earlier than written into law. This is a critical step forward because Veterans who are enrolled in VA health care are proven to have better health outcomes than non-enrolled Veterans, and VA hospitals have dramatically outperformed non-VA hospitals in overall quality ratings and patient satisfaction ratings. Additionally, VA health care is often more affordable than non-VA health care for Veterans.

Full Press Release

Deputy Commissioner of Veterans Affairs

Vincent Solomeno

Vincent Solomeno was appointed by Governor Philip D. Murphy to serve as Deputy Commissioner of Veterans Affairs, New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs (DMAVA), and Administrator of Veterans Affairs for the State of New Jersey in January 2023 and unanimously confirmed by the New Jersey Senate on May 22, 2023. In this role, he has led an historic expansion of state delivered veterans benefits, programs, and services alongside a team of nearly 1,600 professionals committed to delivering world-class support to over 300,000 Garden State Veterans.

Since beginning his tenure, Solomeno has overseen the expansion of the corps of trained and accredited veterans service officers and increased the number of dedicated State of New Jersey Veterans Service Offices from fourteen to one in each of the state’s twenty-one counties. He has also driven efforts to increase wages for frontline healthcare workers, upgrade medical equipment, and implement new technology and evidence-based best practices that have resulted in documented improvements in clinical care and quality of life at the New Jersey Veterans Memorial Homes at Menlo Park, Paramus, and Vineland. He served on the New Jersey Task Force on Long-Term Care Quality and Safety and is currently a member of the New Jersey Task Force on Pandemic and Emergency Preparedness

As Chair of the Governor’s Challenge to Prevent Suicide Among Service Members, Veterans, and Their Families, Solomeno has collaborated with public and private partners to deliver over 45 Mental Health First Aid trainings in every New Jersey county, training over 500 community leaders on how to identify the signs of suicidal ideation and how to intervene to help individuals in crisis.

Prior to his appointment, Solomeno served as the Superintendent of the National Guard Training Center, Sea Girt, where he managed an installation and facilitated the training environment for the New Jersey National Guard, State Police, Department of Corrections, Division of Criminal Justice, and the Juvenile Justice Commission. He was previously the Executive Officer to The Adjutant General and Commissioner of Military and Veterans Affairs. He is co-author of the 2019 and 2024 Resource Guide for New Jersey Military, Veterans, and Families.

A U.S. Army Veteran of Operation Enduring Freedom, Solomeno is a Distinguished Military Graduate of the University of Scranton. He commissioned as a Corps of Engineers Second Lieutenant in 2007. In 2010, he transferred to the New Jersey Army National Guard. In addition to his overseas service, he served on active duty during Hurricane Irene, Superstorm Sandy, and as an operations officer for the National Guard’s statewide COVID-19 response. He currently holds the rank of major and is the recipient of the New Jersey Distinguished Service Medal.

In addition to his Bachelor of Science from the University of Scranton, Solomeno earned his Master of Arts from the University of Amsterdam. He is the recipient of the Harry S. Truman Scholarship and the J. William Fulbright Fellowship.

Solomeno is a life member of the American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the National Guard Association of the United States. He serves on the Board of Trustees of the American Legion Jersey Boys State Program.