Major Richard Star Act Ends Dual-Benefit Penalty for Combat-Disabled Veterans

The Major Richard Star Act is a major win for a specific group of military retirees—those who were medically retired due to a combat-related disability. In short, this bill finally fixes a long-standing financial penalty, ensuring these veterans can receive both their military retirement pay and their VA disability compensation without one benefit reducing the other.

The Double-Dipping Fix: What Changes

For years, if you were a service member retired under Chapter 61 (meaning you were medically retired) and you also received VA disability compensation, the two payments were often offset. This meant the government essentially took back some of your retirement pay because you were getting VA disability pay—a practice often called the 'VA offset' or 'concurrent receipt' issue. This bill specifically targets those with combat-related disabilities who were medically retired under Chapter 61, allowing them to receive both checks in full.

Think of it this way: If a veteran was medically retired with a $2,000 monthly pension and qualified for $1,000 in VA disability for a combat injury, they might only receive $2,000 total because the VA pay reduced the pension dollar-for-dollar. Under the Major Richard Star Act, that veteran now gets the full $2,000 pension plus the full $1,000 VA disability payment, totaling $3,000. The law explicitly removes the rules (sections 5304 and 5305 of title 38) that required this reduction for this specific group of combat-disabled retirees.

Clearing Out the Bureaucratic Cobwebs

Beyond the primary financial benefit, the bill also serves as a necessary bureaucratic cleanup. It strikes several outdated provisions in Title 10 of the U.S. Code related to concurrent receipt. Specifically, it removes language concerning the phase-in period that was used when concurrent receipt was first introduced for other groups of retirees. These temporary rules are no longer needed, so the bill cleans up sections like 1414(a)(1) and (c), simplifying the legal framework and updating the section title to clearly reflect that certain members are eligible for concurrent receipt.

This is a straight-forward change with a clear implementation date: the new rules apply to payments starting on the first day of the month after the Act becomes law. For the affected veterans and their families, this means a significant, immediate boost to their monthly income, finally recognizing that these two benefits—military retirement and disability compensation for combat injuries—are earned separately and should be paid separately.