Difficulty reaching a Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E, Chapter 31) counselor, missed callbacks, and cases closed for "inactivity" are common frustrations veterans report across different regional offices, not something unique to one location. VR&E is administered locally, and staffing levels, caseloads, and turnover at a given regional office can create real gaps in communication even when a veteran is doing everything right on their end.
If your Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor (VRC) is not responding, the first step is to escalate in writing. Send a dated email or letter (keep copies) summarizing your attempts to reach them, including dates and methods of contact. If there is no response within a reasonable period, ask to speak with the VRC's supervisor or the site's Vocational Rehabilitation Officer — every VR&E office has a chain of supervision above the individual counselor, and case files are supposed to be reassigned or covered when a counselor is unreachable.
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 →Regarding case closure for "inactivity": under 38 CFR 21.196 and related VR&E policy, a case can be discontinued if a veteran fails to maintain contact or participate in required plan activities. However, closure is only appropriate when the veteran is actually non-responsive or non-compliant — not when the veteran has been trying to engage and the office simply failed to document or respond to that contact. If your case was closed despite you being actively engaged, you have the right to request reinstatement and to explain, with your own documentation (emails, call logs, certified mail receipts), that you did not abandon the program. You can also file a formal grievance through VR&E's internal process, and if that doesn't resolve things, contact the VA's regional Ombudsman or your congressional representative's veterans' affairs caseworker, who can often get a stalled VR&E case moving.
It's also worth contacting the VA's general helpline (1-800-827-1000) to confirm your case status shows as active in the system, since sometimes there's a disconnect between what a counselor tells you and what's actually logged.
Keep a written record of every contact attempt going forward, including dates, times, and methods, since this documentation is what protects your case if closure or delay becomes an issue and you need to appeal or request reinstatement.
The concrete next step is to put your concerns in writing to the VRC's supervisor or the office's Vocational Rehabilitation Officer, requesting written confirmation of your case status and a timeline for response.
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