Build the real picture
Service periods, current status, conditions, claims, retirement/pay, family, records, and timing can all stay distinct.
Free to use
No account required
No medical-record upload
ONE FRONT DOOR FOR THE MILITARY-TO-VETERAN SYSTEM
Know where you are. Know what comes next.
The information is already out there. The hard part is knowing what applies to you, what matters now, what can wait, and what to do next. MDN starts with your real situation, separates the moving parts, and points you back to the official source or qualified professional when it is time to act.
Your case details stay out of analytics. Free Navigator selections remain in your browser tab.
Built around your situationService history, claims, conditions, retirement/pay, family, records, and timing stay separate.
Privacy-firstNo medical-record upload, ads, or session replay.
IndependentOfficial sources and official notices control.
EXPLORE MDN
Use the part you need right now.
Start with the full picture or jump directly into a focused tool. The platform connects the pieces without forcing every user through the same path.
START WITH THE SITUATION
What is happening to you or your family?
These routes start from the person, the change, or the real-world problem—not from an agency acronym.
Start hereFree NavigatorBuild the situation first, preserve unknowns, and surface what deserves attention next.Start MDN →
Life went sidewaysLife SituationsDUI, arrest, NJP, separation, divorce, debt, housing, job loss, clearance, records, family safety, and recovery can hit several systems at once.Figure out what comes next →
Your family roleFamily & Survivor NavigatorStart as a spouse, dependent, caregiver, survivor, Gold Star family member, or former spouse and separate health, income, education, housing, and support lanes.Build my family & survivor map →
Support & connectionSupport & RecoveryFind crisis help, counseling, Veteran peer/community programs, outdoor support, housing resources, or help for someone you are worried about.Find support →
Real-world problemsProblem NavigatorStart with the question you actually have and separate the controlling facts, review lanes, official sources, and professional handoff.Find my problem →
Something changedLife Events NavigatorMarriage, divorce, a new child, death, moving, Medicare, and other changes can touch several agencies at once.See who needs to know →
Death, burial & honorsFuneral & Memorial NavigatorSeparate active-duty casualty assistance, retiree or Veteran death, cemetery choices, funeral honors, memorial items, costs, transportation, and survivor handoffs.Build the funeral & memorial map →
FOCUSED TOOLS & REFERENCE
Already know the lane you need?
Go directly to a condition, service-history, benefit, calculation, or reference task.
ConditionsCondition ReviewKeep medically distinct conditions, status, evidence, functional impact, and unresolved facts separate.Review conditions →
Career continuityService HistoryWork through prior service, component changes, broken service, multiple DD214s, and record conflicts.Check continuity →
ProgramsBenefits & Services RegistryBrowse programs by agency and category, then verify the factors that matter with the official source.Browse benefits →
Ratings & payVA Rating & Pay CalculatorWork through combined-rating math and estimated compensation without putting ratings in the URL.Open calculator →
Learn the systemKnowledge HubUnderstand military disability, transition, VA claims, retirement/pay, benefits, and official-source pathways.Open Knowledge Hub →
HOW MDN WORKS
Separate the picture. Find the intersections. Verify before acting.
MDN is not another claims funnel. It is the navigation layer between the person and the agencies, programs, records, deadlines, and professionals that may matter.
See what intersects
MDN surfaces dependencies, unresolved facts, time-sensitive issues, and places where one lane may affect another.
Verify and hand off
When an official source, accredited representative, counsel, clinician, PEBLO, or other qualified professional needs to take over, MDN says so.
Unknown stays unknown. MDN does not invent missing facts or convert education into a government determination.Build my picture
MDN SEPARATES THE CASE BEFORE IT ROUTES THE CASE
Real military careers and Veteran problems do not fit one dropdown.
The MDN Builder lets several things be true at once. That matters when service history, a VA claim, multiple conditions, retired pay, family benefits, old decisions, and deadlines are all touching the same person.
Serving, MEB/PEB, IDES, or transition
Duty impact, treatment, profiles/LIMDU, DES/IDES, BDD timing, records, retirement/separation decisions, and health-care handoffs.
Start this picture in MDN →VA claim, decision, increase, or review
Initial claims, evidence, C&P/DBQ, denials, increases, secondary conditions, Supplemental Claims, HLR, Board review, effective dates, TDIU, and SMC.
Start this picture in MDN →Old claim or unresolved issue years later
Old denials, worsening rated conditions, never-filed conditions, missing records, final decisions, effective-date questions, and re-entry after years away.
Start this picture in MDN →Multiple conditions that need to stay separate
Add medically distinct conditions individually and preserve each condition’s status, rating, functional impact, evidence lane, and unresolved facts.
Add my conditions in MDN →Military retirement, VA compensation, and pay
Chapter 61, TDRL/PDRL, longevity or Reserve retirement, VA offset, CRDP, CRSC, severance recoupment, DFAS changes, and SBP.
Start this picture in MDN →Family, caregiver, dependent, or survivor
TRICARE, CHAMPVA, caregiver support, dependency, DIC, SBP, education, housing, survivor income, and bereavement all use different rules.
Open Family & Survivor Navigator →Prior service, Guard/Reserve, broken service, multiple DD214s, different discharges, former names, or conflicting records?The Builder asks for those separately so the latest service period does not overwrite the rest of the career.
WHY MDN IF THE INFORMATION ALREADY EXISTS?
Because finding information is not the same as knowing what applies.
VA, DoD, DFAS, TRICARE, the military departments, and other official sources already publish the rules. MDN is not trying to replace them. It is the navigation layer that helps you understand which questions matter for your situation before you already know what to Google.
Start before the DD214Surface transition clocks, records, BDD timing, health-care handoffs, and decisions that are easier to protect before separation.
See interactions before actingSMC and existing-rating concerns • Chapter 61 + VA compensation • VA offset + CRDP/CRSC • survivor programs • Guard/Reserve service-period sensitivity
Handle real service historiesPrior service • branch/component changes • Guard/Reserve/IRR • broken service • former names • conflicting recordsCheck continuity →
Keep unknowns visibleMissing diagnosis • unclear VA status • unknown deadlines • unresolved service periods • unclassified issues
Come back years laterOld denial • worsening rated condition • never-filed issue • secondary condition • missing record • decision-review questionSee the re-entry pathway →
OFFICIAL-SOURCE-BACKED KNOWLEDGE
Learn the system without having to become an expert in the bureaucracy.
The Knowledge Hub explains the major pathways, while the Builder helps narrow which pieces deserve your attention. Deeper pages connect back to VA, DoD, DFAS, TRICARE, Title 38 CFR, and other controlling official sources.
Military medical disabilityDES • IDES • MEB/PEB • fitness • dispositionExplore →
Separation & retirementBDD • records • health care • benefits handoffExplore →
VA claims & decisionsEvidence • C&P • decisions • reviews • regulationsExplore →
Military retirement & payChapter 61 • CRDP • CRSC • DFAS • TRICAREExplore →
Benefits & services registryHealth • education • VR&E • housing • family • survivor • retired payBrowse →
Family & survivor navigationSpouse • dependent • caregiver • survivor • former spouse • health • income • education • supportOpen Family & Survivor →
Funeral & memorial navigationCasualty assistance • cemeteries • honors • memorial items • burial costs • survivor handoffOpen Funeral & Memorial →
Condition reviewMedically distinct conditions • evidence • duty impact • record alignmentOpen condition review →
TRUST & SOURCE STANDARD
MDN should help you reach the right answer—not trap you inside MDN.
MDN organizes information around the person while keeping the boundary clear: educational navigation and organization here, authoritative decisions and individualized professional judgment where they belong.
Unknown stays unknown
The platform does not invent missing facts. It preserves uncertainty and routes the user toward the official answer.
Local-first builder
Builder selections stay in the browser tab rather than creating a central personal-case database or sending case facts to analytics.
Professional handoff
When the next step requires a PEBLO, counsel, accredited representative, clinician, or other qualified professional, MDN should say so clearly.
SourcesOfficial-source first
DoD, military departments, VA, DFAS, TRICARE, federal law and regulations, state agencies, and other responsible official sources are the baseline.
Review statusProduct and public-site method reviewed Sep. 9, 2026
Topic-specific guidance keeps its own review date and official sources so a site-wide product review is never treated as a substitute for current agency guidance.
Verify before actingOfficial notices control
Deadlines, elections, ratings, eligibility decisions, legal rights, and medical determinations should be verified with the responsible official source or qualified professional.
How MDN handles sources →START WITH THE WHOLE PICTURE
You do not need to know the right acronym to start.
Tell MDN who you are, where you are now, what your service history looks like, what you are trying to solve, what VA has already done, which conditions matter, and whether a clock is running. MDN will separate the lanes before pointing you forward.