President Donald Trump signed an executive order Tuesday requiring the Department of War and the Department of Veterans Affairs to overhaul how they share military records, a process that has left veterans waiting 90 to 180 days for benefits they had already earned.
The VA relies on military personnel files and service treatment records to process healthcare, disability, education, and home-loan benefits. According to the White House, the current transfer delays have left veterans in limbo on healthcare coverage, claims, education programs, and job training.
The order gives the two departments 180 days to build a system that shares records continuously, starting from a person’s entry into military service through the full period they receive VA benefits. For service members leaving active duty, the timeline is tighter: the Department of War has 30 days to ensure personnel and medical records reach the VA immediately upon discharge or release.
The executive order describes the underlying problem directly: “Outdated and unwieldy records management and data systems and procedures hinder military personnel file and medical record sharing between the Department of War and the Department of Veterans Affairs, which complicates the effective transition of military personnel from active-duty service to civilian life.”
A separate 180-day deadline requires the VA and the Department of War to build AI-powered digital tools meant to streamline benefits applications, with Department of Labor job-training opportunities folded into the same system.
Backlog Already Falling
The VA says the average time to process a disability claim has already dropped 46 percent, from 141.5 days to 76.1 days. Officials estimate better access to military records could shave off another 20 to 30 days for recently separated service members.
VA Secretary Doug Collins said the change would remove a major source of delay for veterans entering the system. “Giving VA continuous access to warfighters’ military records will eliminate weeks of waiting for Veterans applying for VA healthcare and financial benefits,” Collins said. “We want to make the transition from military to Veteran status as seamless as possible.”
The VA’s overall benefits backlog has fallen more than 70 percent under the Trump administration, after growing 24 percent during the Biden administration, according to the VA. The backlog dropped below 70,000 in July, the lowest level since 2020.
A White House official told the Daily Caller, which first reported the order, that the administration inherited a backlog of more than 70,000 transitioning service members stuck waiting because of outdated federal systems that had gone unaddressed.
New Requirements Before Discharge
The order also adds requirements to the Transition Assistance Program. Before leaving active duty, service members must now be connected with open jobs matching their skills, or enrolled in career education, federally funded training, or a registered apprenticeship.
They must also be connected with a federal, state, or local veterans representative who can assist with healthcare, disability, home loans, job placement, and education benefits.
Under the order, the agencies have 30 days to begin immediate record transfers for departing service members, 120 days to review relevant technology contracts, and 180 days to complete the broader records-sharing overhaul.
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