VA’s National Cemetery Administration (NCA) manages 155 national cemeteries in 42 states. Memorial Day ceremonies will be conducted this year in more than 130 of them. NCA also provides headstones, markers, medallions, and Presidential Memorial Certificates for qualified veterans. 

While not officially designated as NCA until 1998, its administrative birthday is 1973 when Congress passed the National Cemeteries Act creating an agency within the then Veterans Administration to oversee the national cemetery system dating back to the American Civil War. Some BVA members may be unaware of the burial benefits for which they are eligible. For information about the criteria for burial in a national cemetery, click here.