Presentation by Heidi Golding and Elizabeth Bass, analysts in CBO's National Security Division, at the Annual Conference of the Western Economic Association International.
Veterans from the Vietnam War (August 1964–January 1973) constitute the last cohort subject to the draft and represent roughly one-third of veterans. By 2018, most had retired from the workforce. As people leave the workforce, their sources of income change.
Because little is known about the financial security of Vietnam veterans, CBO compared the income of male Vietnam veterans with the income of male nonveterans of the same ages.
On average, in 2018, Vietnam veterans and nonveterans had roughly comparable total income, $63,300 and $65,000, respectively. Similar results were found for men age 71, the most common age for veterans.
Disability compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs provided a substantial portion of many veterans' income. Excluding those payments, their income was $59,000, 9 percent lower than nonveterans'.
In general, Vietnam veterans received more money from Social Security and retirement plans than nonveterans did.
