When a Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E) counselor stops responding, is reassigned, or leaves the VA entirely, veterans are not left without recourse, but the chain of contacts is different from general disability claims and it helps to know the correct order.
First, contact the VR&E office at the Regional Office (RO) that manages your case, not the national VR&E policy line or general VA hotline. Every VR&E case is tied to a specific RO, and each RO has a designated Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Officer (VREO) or Assistant VREO who supervises all counselors at that location. If your counselor is gone, the VREO or Assistant VREO is the person responsible for reassigning your case to a new counselor. Ask specifically for the VREO by title when you call, rather than trying random extensions.
Official 2026 VA monthly compensation, including the 2.8% COLA increase.
Dependent add-ons start at a 30% rating. Child-only and dependent-parent rates: see the full 2026 pay chart.
| Rating | Monthly (2026, incl. 2.8% COLA) |
|---|---|
| 10% | $180.42 |
| 20% | $356.66 |
| 30% | $552.47 |
| 40% | $795.84 |
| 50% | $1,132.90 |
| 60% | $1,435.02 |
| 70% | $1,808.45 |
| 80% | $2,102.15 |
| 90% | $2,362.30 |
| 100% | $3,938.58 |
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Analyze my claim free →If you cannot get a response after a reasonable attempt (documented phone logs and emails), escalate in writing to the RO director's office and copy the VR&E case management email associated with that regional office; this creates a paper trail. Ask VA (ASKVA) tickets should reference your case number and prior contact attempts, since generic tickets can get lost or routed back to the same non-responsive office.
If regional escalation fails, veterans can contact their U.S. Senator or Representative's constituent services office and request a congressional inquiry to the VA. Congressional caseworkers routinely handle exactly this kind of stalled VR&E case and can get direct answers from VA leadership within days, because agencies are required to respond to congressional inquiries.
Separately, the VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) hotline exists for systemic issues like disconnected calls and unreturned messages, though it is better suited to reporting a pattern of poor service than resolving an individual case quickly.
Throughout this process, keep your VR&E case number, dates of contact attempts, and names of any representatives you speak with; VR&E counselors change often, and having your case number ready speeds up reassignment once you reach someone with authority over your file.
The concrete next step is to call the Regional Office VR&E division directly and ask specifically to speak with the VREO or Assistant VREO about reassigning your case, then follow up in writing the same day to create a documented record.
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