If you may ever want to use VA health care don't wait until you need it. Apply as soon as you can, get your eligibility and priorities sorted out, then hold onto your card and paperwork. I was able to get my father home health care benefits activated in 5 days because he was already registered in the VA health care system.
This is excellent advice. We made the mistake of waiting until we needed the benefits and my FIL died before we could get any assistance from the VA.
