VA Life Insurance Opens to All Veterans Under 81; Space Force Gets Traumatic Injury Coverage

This bill, officially titled the VA Insurance Improvement Act, is essentially a series of practical updates to how the Department of Veterans Affairs handles some of its key insurance programs. The biggest change here is a major expansion of a life insurance program that was previously restricted, alongside some necessary financial cleanup and an update to cover the newest military branch.

Life Insurance: Dropping the Disability Requirement

Previously, if you wanted to apply for the VA’s specialized life insurance—formerly called “Service-Disabled Veterans Insurance”—you needed to have a service-connected disability. This bill changes that completely. Section 2 removes the term “service-disabled” from the eligibility criteria and the program’s name, rebranding it simply as "Veterans Affairs life insurance." Now, any veteran discharged under conditions other than dishonorable can apply, provided they do so before turning 81 years old. This is a significant expansion. For the vast majority of veterans who don't have a service-connected disability rating but still want access to this specific government insurance option, this opens the door.

Space Force Gets TSGLI Coverage

When the Space Force was established, not all existing laws automatically updated to include it. Section 4 fixes one of those gaps by adding the Space Force to the list of uniformed services eligible for the Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance Traumatic Injury Protection (TSGLI) program. TSGLI provides a lump-sum payment to service members who suffer severe injuries resulting in traumatic losses (like loss of sight, limb, or certain injuries requiring long hospital stays). This change ensures that members of the newest branch receive the same crucial financial safety net as their counterparts in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard.

VA’s Internal Accounting Gets Tighter

Section 3 deals with the Veterans Mortgage Life Insurance program (VMLI), which helps cover the mortgages of severely disabled veterans. This section doesn't affect the veterans receiving the benefit, but it changes how the VA pays for the program's overhead. It requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to calculate the administrative costs of running VMLI each year and then reimburse the VA’s general operating and IT accounts for those costs. The money for this reimbursement must come from the Veterans Insurance and Indemnities appropriation account. Think of it like this: the VA is being told to move funds internally to ensure the specific insurance fund (VMLI) pays for its own administrative upkeep, rather than letting those costs quietly drain the general operating budget. It’s a clean-up measure to ensure better financial accountability within the Department.