Published July 22, 2026. The benefits-news items below were current as of that date; projections were projections when written. This is an archived issue of our weekly email — subscribe here to get new issues first.
Both checks land Friday, July 31
Because August 1 falls on a Saturday, both major deposits move up to the last business day: VA disability compensation for July pays out Friday, July 31, and military retired pay — including CRSC, which rides the same DFAS schedule — lands the same day. If you receive both, expect two deposits the same morning; if you budget around two different pay dates, this is your once-in-a-while heads-up. One number to watch after that: the August 12 inflation report is one of only three readings left that set the 2027 COLA, with projections currently running in the high-3s to mid-4s. Nothing is final until mid-October. (Source: VA / DFAS pay schedules; MOAA COLA Watch. Projection — not final.)
The Army's burn-pit "do-over" is running right now
In March, the Army settled Smoke v. Driscoll, a class action for soldiers whose Physical Evaluation Boards refused to mark burn-pit conditions as combat-related. Under the settlement, the Army is reviewing every soldier medically retired on or after August 10, 2022 for a PACT Act condition that wasn't given a combat-related designation — and it agreed to make reasonable efforts to finish those reviews within six months of the March 6 settlement, a window that runs through early September. Why retirees should care: a combat-related designation is exactly the kind of finding a CRSC packet is built on. Chapter 61 retirees whose burn-pit conditions get re-designated may qualify for CRSC they were previously told wasn't on the table. If that could be you, don't assume the review caught your file — check your paperwork. (Source: NVLSP class action docket; Smoke et al. v. Driscoll settlement, March 6, 2026.)
Not Army? The settlement binds the Army, but the underlying logic — burn pits treated as an instrumentality of war — is the same argument a well-built CRSC application makes to any branch's board. Strong documentation of exposure and diagnosis matters either way.
Treating the PEB checkbox as the final word
Plenty of retirees never file for CRSC because their PEB paperwork — the DA 199 or its service equivalent — says "not combat-related." That checkbox is not the end of the story. CRSC is a separate application, decided by your service branch's CRSC board under its own evidence standard, and the Smoke settlement is proof that even the Army revisits these designations when the evidence says otherwise. A packet that was never filed because of an old checkbox pays exactly $0 — and after the Supreme Court's Soto ruling, approved claims may reach further back than the old six-year cap ever allowed.
Beat the August 1 clothing allowance deadline. If you use a VA-prescribed prosthetic or orthopedic device — a brace, a TENS unit — or a skin medication that wears out or stains your clothing, the VA's annual clothing allowance pays $1,053.19 per qualifying item for 2026. First-time applications (VA Form 10-8678, filed with the prosthetics rep at your VA medical center) must be in by August 1; if you're already receiving it and nothing changed, it renews automatically. That's ten days. And while you have your file out: not sure your ratings are working as hard as your service record says they should? Book a free 15-minute CRSC review.
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