WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Rep. Mike Bost announced Thursday that the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, the central repository for personnel records for the military and government civilian employees, has eliminated a backlog of record requests that left veterans waiting over a year-and-a-half for the documentation they needed to obtain benefits, medals, and other services.

“America’s veterans served their nation proudly, and they shouldn’t get bogged down in bottlenecks and backlogs to get the benefits they deserve,” said Bost. “That’s why I led a coalition of over 100 House members in asking for answers on when these delays would be resolved. I couldn’t be happier to hear that the backlog has been cleared and our veterans can get back to receiving their records in a timely manner.”

Following COVID, the backlog in veterans’ record requests swelled to 600,000. Bost originally appealed for answers on the delays in January 2022.