DOD Installation access simplified: Three updates for Veterans and caregivers

Veterans and eligible caregivers will soon have easier access to Department of Defense (DOD) installations for Veterans. Beginning Nov. 1, 2024, the updated process announced by VA and DOD will streamline both enrollment and access to installations. More information can be found in DOD's fact sheet.

DOD installations provide important services to Veterans and their caregivers, such as health care, shoppin, and certain morale, welfare, and recreation (MWR) services, like golf courses, movie theaters and clubs. Recently, VA and DOD have worked together to increase health care access for Veterans in Alabama, the Gulf Coast and Tampa regions of Florida, as well as Kentucky, New York's Hudson Valley, Tennessee and Virginia.

Eligible Veterans who do not have a VA-issued Veteran Health Identification Card (VHIC)-as well as eligible caregivers-can now enroll for installation access at the visitor center using their REAL ID Act-compliant driver's license or non-driver's identification card. This means these individuals no longer need to present a VA-issued caregiver patronage letter, VA-issued service-connected disability letter, or VA Health Eligibility Center Form H623A to enroll for installation access.

To enroll for reoccurring installation access, eligible Veterans and caregivers must establish identity, fitnes, and purpose on their first visit to each DOD installation they wish to access at the visitor's center. As part of enrollment, you must:

1. Present an acceptable credential (VHIC or REAL ID) to establish identity;
2. Undergo an on-the-spot criminal record and terrorism check to establish fitness; and
3. Have your eligibility for on-installation benefits verified electronically to establish purpose. If your purpose is for health care, and the DOD installation doesn't have a commissary, exchange, or authorized MWR service, then proof of appointment will need to be provided.

More information on Veteran and caregiver eligibility can be found online.

Updates to DOD installation access

When entering a DOD installation, Veteran and caregiver eligibility is now verified electronically. Following enrollment for reoccurring installation access, Veterans and eligible caregivers can enter the installation by presenting the same VHIC or REAL ID they enrolled with.

Enrollment is typically valid for one to three years, or one year after the last visit to the given DOD installation. If a patron's VHIC or REAL ID expires, they will need to reenroll with their new VHIC or REAL ID. Termination of a patron's eligibility will automatically result in the termination of installation access enrollment.

If your VHIC has recently expired or is expiring soon, learn more about how to renew it.

Additional requirements for accessing Commissary, Exchange and MWR services

Veterans who do not have a VHIC and their eligible caregivers will still need to provide a hard copy letter (a VA-issued caregiver patronage letter, VA-issued service-connected disability letter, or a VA Health Eligibility Center Form H623A) to show eligibility and to access commissary, exchange or authorized MWR services, as these facilities cannot electronically verify eligibility.

Currently, for purposes of MWR, commissary and exchange shopping, eligible caregivers are those who are approved and designated as a primary family caregiver of an eligible Veteran under VA's Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers.

Learn more about commissary and exchange privileges for Veterans online. Veterans with additional questions are encouraged to contact their local installation for further assistance or visit www.militaryonesource.mil.

Disclaimer: A portion of this story was generated by AI. None of the data we reported included personal or sensitive information, and it was fact-checked and edited by a human copy editor prior to publishing.

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