The Pennsylvania Department of Military and Veterans Affairs (DMVA) encourages veterans to meet with an accredited professional to ensure they are receiving or maximizing the benefits they have earned through their service. A benefits review is simple and often takes place by phone or virtually. Veterans are reminded that they should never pay for help applying for their benefits.

Safeguarding military paperwork, especially the DD-214, which is used to verify military service, is an important first step for securing benefits. The easiest way to manage military documents is to make sure they are filed in a safe place immediately upon leaving the military. Veterans can file their documents for free at their county courthouse of record to secure them until needed, which can often be decades in the future. Anyone who needs assistance locating his or her military documentation can call 800-547-2838 toll-free or email RA-REQ@pa.gov.

Another key step is for veterans to apply for federal health care and state benefits by visiting their local county director of veterans affairs or area accredited veterans' service organizations to find out what benefits they may be eligible for and to get help applying for those benefits. A complete list of county directors and their contact information can be found by visiting http://www.dmva.pa.gov and clicking on Contact Your County Director. Contact information for veteran service officers can be found by searching for Veteran Service Officer Grant Program on the aforementioned website.

In addition to connecting with a county director or an accredited veterans' service organization, all of Pennsylvania's nearly 800,000 veterans are encouraged to sign up for the DMVA Veterans Registry, a free tool that electronically delivers timely information about the state benefits, programs and services available to veterans. Veterans, family members, and people who work with veterans can sign up by computer or mobile device at http://www.register.dmva.pa.gov.

There are more than 200 accredited veteran service officers in Pennsylvania working with the DMVA, county offices, and several veterans' service organizations who will provide the review process at no cost. These veteran advocates are highly trained in the regulations and processes for reviewing benefits.

To learn more about the DMVA, visit http://www.facebook.com/padmva.