Edward: Welcome to the MIL News Weekly for 28 September - 4 October
2025, your essential guide to the latest news impacting the
military and veteran community.
Whether you're currently serving in uniform, a military retiree, a veteran,
or a family member, this is your source for the critical updates you need to know.
Each week, we cut through the noise to bring you the most important developments
from the Pentagon, Capitol Hill, and the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Weâll cover everything from new policies and pay raises affecting
active and reserve forces, to changes in healthcare and benefits for
retirees, and the latest on VA services and legislation for our veterans.
Let's get you informed.
Hereâs whatâs happened this past week.
Issues That Affect Active and Reserve Military Personnel
Immediate Activation of TRICARE Reserve Select Survivor Benefits
Effective October 1, 2025, a significant expansion of healthcare benefits for the
survivors of non-activated National Guard and Reserve members went into effect.
This change is monumental for Reserve component families who face the
immediate loss of healthcare coverage following the death of a sponsor.
The regulatory shift extends the eligibility period for surviving
family members to continue or purchase TRICARE Reserve Select (TRS)
coverage for up to three years from the date of the sponsorâs death.
This action is a massive increase in support, moving the eligibility
period from the previous, highly constrained window of just six
months following the sponsor's death.
This legislative adjustment effectively mitigates the severe financial and
logistical stress often referred to as the "benefits cliff" faced
by surviving Reserve families.
Previously, the short six-month window forced these families into
a rapid transition to either the Continued Health Care Benefit Program
(CHCBP)âwhich is often significantly more expensiveâor onto the commercial
healthcare market, coinciding with a time of intense bereavement.
The extension to three years provides crucial stability, allowing families the
necessary time to adjust their financial planning and securing affordable coverage.
This change also elevates the level of support offered to Reserve component
families, strengthening the overall commitment to quality-of-life benefits
for the Reserve component, thereby bolstering overall talent retention.
In addition to medical coverage, surviving spouses who enroll in the TRICARE Dental
Program (TDP) Survivor Benefit Plan during the new three-year window will
have the government cover 100 percent of their monthly premium, further easing
the financial burden on these families.
Legislative Focus: National Defense Authorization Act
for Fiscal Year 2026 (H.R.
3838)
The primary legislative focus during this period centered on H.R.
3838, the Streamlining Procurement for Effective Execution and Delivery
and National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026, which had been
reported to the House in August 2025.
The bill dictates the appropriations and policy framework for the DoD.
The legislation specifies authorizations of appropriations totaling $884.3
billion for fiscal year 2026.
This massive budget is aligned with the DoD's strategic goals, including
the Department of the Air Forceâs stated mission to rebuild the
military and optimize its structure to maintain an advantage against
growing global military capabilities.
Notably, the bill proposes an $11.5
billion, or 6 percent, increase for military personnel accounts
compared to the previous year.
Proposed 2026 Military Compensation
Central to the debate were proposals regarding military compensation
for the upcoming fiscal year.
Base Pay Increase: Both the House and Senate versions of the NDAA currently
support a base pay increase of 3.8
percent for 2026.
This figure is precisely synchronized with the automatic statutory requirement
mandated by the Employment Cost Index (ECI), which serves as the
benchmark for military pay raises.
Family Separation Allowance (FSA): The House version of H.R.
3838 aims to establish a new floor for the Family Separation Allowance,
boosting it to $400 per month.
This increase provides a meaningful financial benefit for service members
who are deployed or otherwise separated from their families for extended periods.
Housing and Subsistence Allowances: Recognizing that allowances are crucial
to real purchasing power, the House version mandates specific studies aimed
at improving the accuracy of both the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) and the
Basic Allowance for Subsistence (BAS).
The proposed 3.8
percent raise should be viewed as the minimum compensation floor.
Given that Congress previously exercised its authority to supersede
the automatic ECI mandate in the 2025 NDAAâproviding a 14.5
percent raise for junior enlisted membersâthe 3.8
percent figure is highly likely to be the starting point for negotiation.
Legislative advocacy during the conference process will likely push for targeted,
above-inflation raises to address retention challenges and ensure military
compensation remains robustly competitive with private-sector wages, particularly
for high-demand or junior ranks.
Furthermore, the significant 8 percent increase in authorization
for military construction and family housing included in the $884.3
billion budget , combined with the mandated studies on BAH and BAS
accuracy , signals a strong strategic commitment to improving service member
quality of life and infrastructure, which is widely recognized as a
primary factor in retention efforts.
Legislative Impacts on Federal Civilian Employees
H.R.
3838 also contains critical provisions that directly impact the DoDâs federal
civilian workforce, which is increasingly integrated into the "Total Force" concept.
Combat Zone Protections: The bill includes a one-year extension of
the temporary authority to grant specific allowances, benefits, and
gratuities to civilian personnel on official duty in a combat zone.
This ensures that deployed civilian support staff receive equivalent
protections alongside military personnel.
Hiring Protections and Leave: Other provisions address personnel
management, including an exemption from civilian hiring freezes for delayed
DoD appointments resulting from the employeeâs active military duty.
Additionally, an amendment proposes to correct a longstanding error,
clarifying that District of Columbia National Guard members who were
federal civilian employees during their mobilization in 2020 were entitled
to leave without loss in pay or time.
These provisions related to civilian combat zone benefits
and leave coordination underscore a policy trend toward formally
protecting and integrating the DoDâs civilian and military components.
As expeditionary and sustainment operations rely heavily on
specialized civilian expertise, the evolution of these legal frameworks
is essential to recognize their indispensable role in the Total Force.
Issues That Affect Retired Military Personnel
2026 Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) Projection
The COLA determination for military retirement annuities, Civil Service
Retirement System (CSRS) annuities, and Social Security benefits is determined
by comparing the average Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and
Clerical Workers (CPI-W) during the third calendar quarter (July, August, and
September) of the current year against the third-quarter average of the previous
year (the fiscal year 2025 baseline).
Based on the August 2025 CPI-W data, which was released prior to
this reporting period, the vast majority of analysts project the
2026 COLA to be approximately 2.7
percent.
The August 2025 CPI-W figure of 317.306
registered 2.8
percent higher than the FY 2025 baseline, indicating a strong trend toward the 2.7
percent forecast.
The official and final COLA figure cannot be formally announced by the
Social Security Administration until the release of the September 2025
CPI-W figures, which is scheduled for Wednesday, October 15, 2025, just
outside the current reporting window.
Impact Differentiation Across Retirement Systems
The COLA projection applies differently across federal retirement programs:
Military Retirement and CSRS: Annuitants under military retirement and the
Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) are expected to receive the full 2.7
percent adjustment, mirroring the Social Security increase.
FERS Annuities: Annuities under the Federal Employees Retirement System
(FERS) follow a different calculation rule when inflation is high.
However, because the projected 2.7
percent COLA is below the 3.0
percent threshold, FERS beneficiaries are currently
anticipated to receive the full 2.7
percent increase, maintaining parity with their CSRS and military counterparts.
FECA Benefits: Benefits paid under the Federal Employees Compensation Act
(FECA) for work-related injuries utilize a different mechanism, measuring the
CPI-W change from December to December.
Based on data through August 2025, the projected adjustment for FECA
benefits is slightly higher at 2.67
percent.
The projected 2.7
percent COLA for 2026 is only marginally higher than the 2.5
percent COLA received in 2025.
This relatively modest rate, combined with the fact that wages for civilian
workers saw an increase of only 0.8
percent in real (inflation-adjusted) terms over the 12 months ending
June 2025 , suggests that while hyper-inflationary pressures have
stabilized compared to previous years, retirees may not experience significant
net gains in purchasing power.
The focus of military and retiree advocacy organizations remains centered on ensuring
that these adjustments are protected to preserve the purchasing power of
service-earned benefits against inflation.
Legislative Support for Retired Personnel
The NDAA (H.R.
3838) also provides specific support mechanisms for the retired community.
A key allocation within H.R.
3838 is the authorization of $77 million designated for the Armed
Forces Retirement Home (AFRH).
This funding is essential for the continued operation and maintenance of
the facilities that provide housing and care for thousands of eligible retired
service members, confirming the role of the defense authorization bill as
a comprehensive funding vehicle for military-related institutional support.
Additionally, legislative engagement with federal retirement flexibility was
evidenced by an amendment proposed to H.R.
3838.
This provision aims to allow members of the Foreign Service to utilize Voluntary
Early Retirement Authority (VERA) when their agency is undergoing a reduction
in force or other restructuring.
Issues That Affect Veterans Affairs
Critical Overhaul of VA Disability Rating Criteria
Veterans policy during this period is dominated by preparations for
upcoming, highly complex updates to the VA disability rating schedule for
three high-volume conditions: mental health, sleep apnea, and tinnitus.
These changes, expected to take effect later in 2025 or 2026, represent
a fundamental shift in how the VA evaluates service-connected disabilities.
Mental Health VA Rating Criteria
The regulatory change dictates that the VA will transition its evaluation standard
away from judging social or occupational impairment and toward measuring the
severity and frequency of symptoms.
This shift is intended to foster greater consistency in claim evaluations.
The potential benefit for veterans with severe mental health symptoms
is substantial, as they could receive higher ratings regardless of their
current employment status or ability to function socially, provided their
claims documentation accurately reflects the new symptom-focused criteria.
Sleep Apnea VA Rating Criteria
This update involves a substantial reduction in potential compensation
for a common condition.
Under the updated criteria, veterans diagnosed with service-connected
sleep apnea who require a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machine
may receive only a 10 percent rating.
This marks a massive adjustment, as the current VA system generally
awards a 50 percent rating for sleep apnea requiring a CPAP device.
Standalone Tinnitus Ratings
The VA is eliminating the separate, primary 10 percent rating
historically awarded for tinnitus.
Going forward, tinnitus will only be compensable if it is deemed secondary
to, or etiologically tied to, another primary compensable condition.
This change will directly reduce compensation for veterans who
claimed tinnitus as a standalone disability, requiring them to
reevaluate how this condition is linked to other service-connected
hearing or neurological issues.
The combined regulatory tightening surrounding sleep apnea and tinnitus,
which are two of the fastest-growing service connections, represents a
clear, substantial measure to control long-term disability compensation costs.
Reducing the compensability thresholds for these high-volume claims optimizes
financial outlays while the change to mental health criteria simultaneously
allows the VA to defend the system as being more objective and consistent.
Veterans currently receiving benefits for these conditions must
monitor the effective dates of these regulatory shifts closely.
This news necessitates proactive planning to consult with Veterans
Service Organizations (VSOs) or legal counsel to ensure claims and
documentation align with the new symptom-focused evaluation criteria.
VA Operational and Legislative Support Initiatives
The VA continues its mission with targeted operational successes
and ongoing legislative support.
Combating Homelessness: The VA announced the award of $84 million
in grants aimed specifically at combating veteran homelessness.
This substantial release underscores housing security as a
persistent, high-priority federal focus for the veteran population.
Quality of Care: External validation of VA healthcare quality was confirmed
when the VA earned top scores in the latest Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services (CMS) hospital ratings report, demonstrating a commitment to high
standards of medical care nationwide.
Insurance Milestone: The Veterans Affairs Life Insurance Program
reached a major financial milestone, surpassing $2 billion in coverage for
service-connected veterans, highlighting the success and financial protection
provided by VA insurance options.
Facility and Program Funding: H.R.
3838 includes an authorization of $163 million for a Department of
Veterans Affairs medical-facility demonstration fund, providing
dedicated resources for innovative facility development and expansion.
Separately, the VA featured the success of its driver rehabilitation programs
in restoring independence for veterans.
Legislative Focus on Vulnerable Veterans
Proposed amendments to H.R.
3838 highlight legislative efforts to address persistent
socioeconomic vulnerabilities within the veteran population:
SNAP Eligibility: Amendments aim to significantly benefit economically
disadvantaged veterans by seeking to exempt veterans from Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) work requirements and, more specifically, by
expanding SNAP eligibility for certain catastrophically disabled veterans.
This action reflects ongoing legislative attention to food
insecurity issues, such as the
Feed Hungry Veterans Act of 2025.
Women Veteransâ Health: A bipartisan amendment proposes requiring a joint
report from the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs
on current research and gaps related to perimenopause and menopause, specifically
impacting servicewomen and women veterans.
This mandated research signals an increasing focus on addressing
specific, often underserved, areas of womenâs health within the
military medical and VA systems.
This confluence of targeted grants for homelessness and specific legislative
fixes addressing food insecurity demonstrates a multidimensional strategy
focused on ensuring basic needs are met for the most economically disadvantaged
segments of the veteran population.
And that's your Weekly Briefing.
Staying on top of these changes is key to navigating your career,
your retirement, and your benefits.
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Weâll be back next week with another roundup of the news that matters most
to the military and veteran community.