Department of Veterans Affairs: Difference between revisions

The history and evolution of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs are inextricably intertwined and dependent on the history of America's wars, as wounded former soldiers and other US military veterans are the population the VA cares for. The [[list of wars involving the United States]] from the American Revolutionary War to the present totals ninety-nine wars. The majority of the [[United States military casualties of war]], however, occurred in the following eight wars: American Revolutionary War (est. 8,000), American Civil War (218,222), World War I (53,402), [[World War II]] (291,567), [[Korean War]] (33,686), Vietnam War (47,424), [[Iraq War]] (3,836), and the [[War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)|War in Afghanistan]] (1,833). It is these wars that have primarily driven the mission and evolution of the VA. The VA maintains a detailed list of war wounded, as it is this population that comprises the VA care system.<ref>{{Cite web |title=America's Wars |url=https://www.va.gov/opa/publications/factsheets/fs_americas_wars.pdf |access-date=2 November 2023 |website=www.va.gov}}</ref>