VETDIRECT HANDBOOK · REFERENCE LIBRARY
One place to search every VA and HUD-VASH rule that affects your case.
Directives, handbooks, and program guides — organized, searchable, and explained in plain language for veterans, case managers, and advocates.
ABOUT THIS HANDBOOK
What VETDirect Handbook is — and isn't
VETDirect Handbook is a free, independent reference tool built to put HUD-VASH, VA health benefits, VHA policy, and VA's own developer tools in one searchable place — organized the way a case manager or veteran actually needs to look things up, not the way a government org chart is organized.
It summarizes and organizes publicly available federal guidance and links back to the original source for everything. It is not an official VA or HUD website, does not collect accounts or personal data, and is not a substitute for legal, medical, or benefits advice from an accredited representative, VA case manager, or attorney.
SEARCH EVERYTHING AT ONCE
One search box, the whole site
Searches sources, VHA Directives, VA APIs, the glossary, and the phone directory together — click any result to jump straight there.
SOURCE LIBRARY
Browse by source
FULL ENTRIES
Key provisions, quick tips & quotes
Expand a source below for the provisions that matter most, a quotable line, and where to read the original.
MANDATORY POLICY LIBRARY · LIVE VA.GOV SOURCE
VHA Directives
Directives establish mandatory VHA policy — different from Handbooks (procedures/operational requirements), USH Memos (internal HQ policy), Operational Memoranda (field guidance), and Notices (time-limited announcements). This library is pulled from the official VHA Publications Directives index, which currently lists 402 active directives — the 108 most recently issued/updated are indexed and searchable below. Numbers link straight to the official PDF.
| Directive # | Title | Office | Issued | Recert. due | Supersedes / rescinds |
|---|
This index reflects a snapshot of the live VHA Publications directory and is not the full 402-directive catalog. Recertification dates mark when a directive is due for review — a directive stays in effect past that date until formally rescinded or reissued. Always confirm current status against the official listing above before citing a directive.
FOR BUILDERS & INTEGRATORS · VA LIGHTHOUSE PLATFORM
VA API Integrations
VA's Lighthouse developer platform (developer.va.gov) publishes free, no-cost REST APIs — production endpoints live at api.va.gov — that let approved apps pull real VA data on facilities, benefits claims, appeals, health records, identity, and home loans. This is a reference catalog for anyone evaluating what to build against — including case-management tools like this handbook — not a live connection: each API still requires its own registration, API key, and (for most) an OAuth flow before it returns real Veteran data.
CHAIN OF COMMAND · WHO RUNS WHAT
VA Organization & Leadership Directory
From the Secretary down through the three administrations, the staff offices that report to the Secretary's office, and the 19 regional health networks. Names below were verified against current VA, congressional, and news sources as of this update — leadership changes; if a name here ever looks stale, the website link takes you straight to that office's own current leadership page.
1 · Executive Leadership
| Office | Current Leader | Phone | Website |
|---|---|---|---|
| Secretary of Veterans Affairs | The Honorable Doug Collins | 1-800-698-2411 | department.va.gov ↗ |
| Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs | The Honorable Paul R. Lawrence, Ph.D. | 1-800-698-2411 | department.va.gov ↗ |
2 · The Three Administrations
| Administration | Current Leader | Phone | Website |
|---|---|---|---|
| VHA — Veterans Health Administration | John Figueroa, Acting Under Secretary for Health (since Jul. 6, 2026) | 1-877-222-VETS (8387) | va.gov/health ↗ |
| VBA — Veterans Benefits Administration | Margarita Devlin, Acting Principal Deputy Under Secretary for Benefits, performing the delegable duties of the Under Secretary for Benefits | 1-800-827-1000 | benefits.va.gov ↗ |
| NCA — National Cemetery Administration | The Honorable Samuel B. Brown, Under Secretary for Memorial Affairs (confirmed Jul. 2025) | 1-800-535-1117 | cem.va.gov ↗ |
3 · Key Staff Offices Reporting to the Secretary
| Office | Current Leader | Phone | Website |
|---|---|---|---|
| Office of Inspector General (OIG) — independent oversight, not under the Secretary | The Honorable Cheryl L. Mason, Inspector General (sworn in Aug. 2025) | 1-800-488-8244 | vaoig.gov ↗ |
| Office of General Counsel (OGC) | Not independently verified — see office page | 202-461-6000 | va.gov/OGC ↗ |
| Office of Accountability & Whistleblower Protection (OAWP) | Not independently verified — see office page | 1-800-488-8244 | va.gov/accountability ↗ |
| Board of Veterans' Appeals (BVA) | Not independently verified — see office page | 1-800-923-8387 | bva.va.gov ↗ |
| Office of Congressional & Legislative Affairs (OCLA) | Not independently verified — see office page | 1-800-698-2411 | va.gov/OCLA ↗ |
| Office of Public & Intergovernmental Affairs (OPIA) | Not independently verified — see office page | 202-461-7600 | va.gov/opa ↗ |
| Human Resources & Administration / OCHCO | Not independently verified — see office page | 1-800-698-2411 | va.gov/OHRM ↗ |
| Office of Information & Technology (OIT) | Not independently verified — see office page | 1-800-698-2411 | oit.va.gov ↗ |
| Office of Acquisition, Logistics & Construction (OALC) | Not independently verified — see office page | 1-800-698-2411 | va.gov/oal ↗ |
| Office of Enterprise Integration (OEI) | Not independently verified — see office page | 1-800-698-2411 | va.gov/oei ↗ |
| Center for Women Veterans (CWV) | Not independently verified — see office page | 202-461-6193 | va.gov/womenvet ↗ |
| Center for Minority Veterans (CMV) | Not independently verified — see office page | 202-461-6191 | va.gov/centerforminorityveterans ↗ |
| Office of Small & Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) | Not independently verified — see office page | 1-800-949-8387 | va.gov/osdbu ↗ |
4 · Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISNs) — Regional Health Directory
| VISN | Region / Network Name | Find local VAMCs & clinics |
|---|---|---|
| VISN 1 | VA New England Healthcare System | Find facilities ↗ |
| VISN 2 | VA New York/New Jersey VA Health Care Network | Find facilities ↗ |
| VISN 4 | VA Stars & Stripes Healthcare Network | Find facilities ↗ |
| VISN 5 | VA Capitol Health Care Network | Find facilities ↗ |
| VISN 6 | VA Mid-Atlantic Health Care Network | Find facilities ↗ |
| VISN 7 | VA Southeast Network | Find facilities ↗ |
| VISN 8 | VA Sunshine Healthcare Network | Find facilities ↗ |
| VISN 9 | VA MidSouth Healthcare Network | Find facilities ↗ |
| VISN 10 | VA Healthcare System (Ohio, Indiana, Michigan) | Find facilities ↗ |
| VISN 12 | VA Great Lakes Health Care System | Find facilities ↗ |
| VISN 15 | VA Heartland Network | Find facilities ↗ |
| VISN 16 | VA South Central VA Health Care Network | Find facilities ↗ |
| VISN 17 | VA Heart of Texas Health Care Network | Find facilities ↗ |
| VISN 19 | VA Rocky Mountain Network | Find facilities ↗ |
| VISN 20 | VA Northwest Health Network | Find facilities ↗ |
| VISN 21 | VA Sierra Pacific Network | Find facilities ↗ |
| VISN 22 | VA Desert Pacific Healthcare Network | Find facilities ↗ |
| VISN 23 | VA Midwest Health Care Network | Find facilities ↗ |
5 · VA Medical Centers, Clinics & Vet Centers (170+ facilities)
Named leaders above were checked against VA, congressional testimony, and news sources at the time this section was built — "Acting" titles in particular can change with little notice. Rows marked "Not independently verified" reflect offices where I could not confirm a specific current name from a reliable source; rather than guess, each links straight to that office's own leadership page.
PRIVATE · SAVED ON THIS DEVICE ONLY
My Case Workspace
Click the ☆ next to any specific provision anywhere on this site to save it here. Add your own notes, then print or save the whole thing as a PDF to bring to an appointment. Nothing here leaves your browser — there's no account, no server, and no one else can see it.
GRAB-AND-GO REFERENCE
Starter Packets
Pick the situation closest to yours. Each packet pulls the actual sources, phone numbers, and terms already on this site into one printable page — no need to hunt across sections.
START HERE
Five things worth knowing before you call anyone
VA disability income no longer counts against HUD-VASH eligibility. Since August 2024, PHAs must exclude VA service-connected disability benefits when deciding if you qualify — though it still counts toward your rent share.
You cannot be denied for having zero income. HUD-VASH must accept a self-certification of zero income and of assets under $50,000 at move-in.
Your voucher search window is at least 120 days. That is the floor, not a suggestion — PHAs can grant extensions on top of it.
Losing your case manager does not mean losing your voucher. A VA determination that you no longer need case management is not grounds for termination.
Every VA employee has a duty to report — and you're protected for speaking up. Whistleblower retaliation can be reported to OAWP or the Office of Special Counsel.
FREQUENTLY ASKED
Common questions across these sources
REFERENCE
Glossary of terms & acronyms
CALL FOR HELP
VA & HUD phone directory
Save this section —
| Line | Number | Use it for |
|---|
CITATIONS
Sources referenced in this handbook
| Document | Issuing agency | Date |
|---|
YOUR RIGHTS & PRIVACY
Your rights & privacy on this site
How this site handles your data
- There is no account, login, or sign-up — nothing you do here is tied to your identity.
- Anything you save (My Case bookmarks and notes, your favorites, Plain Language/theme preference) is stored only in your own browser's local storage. It is never sent to a server, because this site doesn't have one that collects it.
- Clearing your browser data, or using a different device or browser, will not carry your saved items with it — there's nothing to sync because nothing leaves your device.
- This site does not use tracking cookies, analytics pixels, or advertising of any kind.
Your rights as a veteran or patient
- VA patients have a formal set of rights and responsibilities — respect and nondiscrimination, access to your own records, privacy of your health information, and a clear way to raise concerns, complaints, or compliments. See the Veterans Health Benefits Handbook entry in Full Entries for the details.
- If you believe your privacy has been violated at a VA facility, you can contact that facility's Privacy Officer or the VHA Privacy Office — see the Phone Directory below.
- You always have the right to bring an accredited Veterans Service Officer (VSO), attorney, or claims agent into any VA claims process at no cost to you for the VSO's help.
This page is a plain-language summary, not a legal notice or a Terms of Service. It does not create any legal rights or obligations. For the handbook's overall disclaimer about accuracy and scope, see the footer at the bottom of this page.
WHAT'S NEW
Changelog
Last updated September 20, 2026. This is a running log of what's been added to the handbook — check back here instead of re-reading the whole site to see what's changed.