Overview
- The department reports nearly 37,000 employees are either furloughed or working without pay during the monthlong shutdown.
- Medical centers, outpatient clinics and Vet Centers remain open under advance appropriations, and benefits continue to be processed and delivered.
- The GI Bill Hotline is closed, cutting off assistance to more than 900,000 veterans seeking education and training help.
- Over 100,000 enrolled veterans cannot access Veteran Readiness and Employment counseling, with a new‑applicant backlog reported at 61,988.
- Fifty-six regional benefits offices are closed to the public, the Manila office is moving toward permanent closure, in‑person transition briefings for more than 16,000 separating service members are paused, and cemetery maintenance and headstone placements are on hold though burials continue.