US Dept. of Veterans Affairs Health Benefits Hotline

Many Veterans and others are aware of health services offered by the Department of Veterans Affairs; however, by contacting one of the agency’s customer service numbers, service members and Veterans can learn about home loans, programs to help them transition into civilian jobs, counseling and more.

I called the Veterans Affairs 877-222-8387 customer service number to find out what volunteer opportunities are available for community members who want to support local Veterans.

My call began with an automated voice response system thanking me for calling the Department of Veterans Affairs. The voice continued, “We are experiencing a higher-than-normal call volume.” It told me to please hold and that the next available representative would be with me as soon as possible.

After telling me to hold, the voice thanked me for my patience, welcomed me again, and thanked me for my service. It said if I had a medical emergency to hang up and dial 911. Next, it shared that the system may monitor the call for training and quality assurance.

As I waited, I went through another round of the system, thanking me and telling me about the high call volume. Again, the voice told me to hold and that the next available representative would take my call as soon as possible.

The automated voice explained that the call volume may be lower early in the morning and later in the afternoon if I preferred to call back. Then, it shared a menu with numbers I could press on my keypad to get specific information. For enrollment in VA Healthcare, I could press 1. To inquire about billing, collections or insurance, I could press 2.

The voice said it would transfer me to the Veterans Benefits Administration for questions about pensions, disability, education, the GI bill and insurance if I pressed 3. I selected the last option, but rather than transferring me to a representative, the system recited another phone number to call for help.

Telling callers if they have a medical emergency to hang up and call 911 is a helpful strategy because a Veteran experiencing an emergency may call this number for medical assistance. I can appreciate the welcome messages and thanks for serving, but repeating them wasted time, especially since the system offered a menu that I hoped would take me to a human for help.

The system tried in its robotic way to be helpful, but in the end, it gave me another phone number I did not have time to call. Since I am interested in volunteering for the agency, I will try that number when I have more time. Maybe the organization can update the system to share that number at the beginning of the call.