Section 6 Veterans
(6 tables in this section)This section presents statistics on Veterans. Specifically, the data address service connected disability rating; the prevalence of disabilities in the Veteran population; the portion of the Veteran population that experiences poverty, by disability status; and Veterans’ benefits, by disability status. The principal sources of these data are the U.S. Census Bureau, specifically the American Community Survey, and the Veterans Benefits Administration’s Annual Benefits Report.
Table 6.1 - Service-Connected Disability Rating-Civilian Veterans Ages 18 Years and Over Living in the Community, by Disability Status: 2010
In 2010, according to the American Community Survey (ACS), 697,681 individuals ages 18 and over living in the community reported having a military service-connected disability rating of 70 percent or more.
Table 6.2 - Civilian Veterans Ages 18 Years and Over Living in the Community for the United States and States, by Disability Status: 2010
In 2010, there were 21,399,184 civilian veterans ages 18 years and over living in the community, 5,465,191 of which were individuals with disabilities—a prevalence rate of 25.5 percent. Oklahoma had the highest prevalence rates, 31.8 percent, while Maryland had the lowest prevalence rate, 19.0 percent.
Table 6.3 - Poverty—Civilian Veterans with Disabilities Ages 18 to 64 Years Living in the Community for the United States and States: 2010
In 2010, of the 2,070,742 civilian veterans with disabilities ages 18 to 64 years living in the community, 330,063 individuals lived in poverty—a poverty rate of 15.9 percent. In contrast, of the 10,396,058 civilian veterans without disabilities ages 18 to 64 years living in the community, 689,369 civilian veterans lived in poverty—a poverty rate of 6.6 percent. The poverty rate for civilian veterans with disabilities was highest in the District of Columbia (27.7 percent) and lowest in Alaska (7.5 percent).
Table 6.4 - Poverty—Civilian Veterans without Disabilities Ages 18 to 64 Years Living in the Community for the United States and States: 2010
Table 6.5 - Poverty Gap—Civilian Veterans Ages 18 to 64 Years Living in the Community for the United States and States by Disability Status: 2010
In 2010, the poverty rate of civilian veterans with disabilities ages 18 to 64 years living in the community was 15.9 percent, while the poverty rate of individuals without disabilities ages 16 to 64 years living in the community was 6.6 percent—a poverty gap of 9.3 percentage points. The poverty gap was smallest in Alaska (0.1 percentage points) and greatest in the District of Columbia (21.8 percentage points).
Table 6.6 - Veterans Benefits Administration—Compensation and Pension Benefits Paid to Disabled Veterans (in dollars): Federal Fiscal Year 2010
In the Federal Fiscal Year 2010, the U.S. spent a total of $39,646,746,154 on compensation and pension benefits paid to disabled veterans. Of that total amount, $36,485,965,838 was spent on disability compensation, while $3,160,780,316 was spent on disability pensions.
American Community Survey (ACS)—The ACS is a large, continuous demographic survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau that will provide accurate and up-to-date profiles of America’s communities every year. Annual and multi-year estimates of population and housing data are generated for small areas, including tracts and population subgroups. This information is collected by mailing questionnaires to a sample of addresses.
Annual Benefits Report (ABR)—The Annual Benefits Report (ABR) is a national and state level report produced by the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), a division of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The purpose of the ABR is to show the extent to which Veterans and their dependents use VA benefits, “provide insights into the nature of the benefit programs,” and “portray the expenditures associated with VBA programs.” The data for the ABR are derived from the VBA’s Benefits Directory network and from the VETSNET corporate database.
Disability Status (ACS)—The U.S. Census Bureau used six questions to identify persons with disabilities. A response of “yes” to any one of the questions indicates that the person in question has a disability. However, the cognitive, ambulatory, self-care, and independent living related questions are not used to identify disability in individuals less than 5 years old, and the independent living related question is not used to identify disability in individuals less than 18 years old.
Poverty (ACS)—The Office of Management and Budget in Statistical Policy Directive 14 sets the standards for which poverty is calculated. The U.S. Census Bureau uses a set of dollar value thresholds that vary by family size and composition to determine who is in poverty. If a family’s total income is less than the dollar value of the appropriate threshold, then that family and every individual in it are considered to be in poverty.
Poverty Rate—Percent of the population who are determined to be in poverty.
Veteran (ABR)—A Veteran is a person, aged 18 and older, who “served in the active military, naval, or air service, and who was discharged or released under conditions other than dishonorable.”
Service-Connected Disability Rating (ACS)—In the ACS, the VA service-connected disability rating for an individual who is a veteran was collected. The rating reflects the degree of the veteran’s disability on a scale from 0 to 100 percent, in increments of 10 percent.
Service-Connected Disability Rating Status (ACS)—In the ACS, the designation associated with individuals who were in the Reserves or National Guard, trained with the Reserves or National Guard, or active-duty military that have a disability as a result of disease or injury incurred or aggravated during active military service was collected. These disabilities are defined according to the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities in Title 38, U.S. Code of Federal Regulations, Part 4.