Joshua Jacobs serves as the Under Secretary for Benefits. In this role, he leads more than 32,000 Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) employees in the delivery of non-medical benefits programs. VBA provides disability compensation benefits to 6 million Veterans and their survivors and administers pension benefits for nearly 300,000 Veterans and their survivors. Through a nationwide network of 56 regional offices, special processing centers, and VBA Headquarters, he oversees the execution of $189 billion in direct benefits to Veterans and their dependents.
Josh previously served as Senior Advisor for Policy in the Office of the Secretary, where he helped to design and implement a new structure and process for enterprise governance and policy development. In this role, Josh established and chaired a new Evidence Based Policy Council, which meets on a regular basis to drive enterprise policy making. Josh also developed a new interagency policy development process to coordinate and implement more than 50 interagency policy efforts.
Prior to rejoining VA in 2021, Josh Jacobs was a Senior Associate at Booz Allen Hamilton. From 2013 to 2017, Josh served as Senior Advisor in the Office of the Secretary of VA, where he was awarded the Secretary’s Meritorious Service Award. Josh also served nine years in the U.S. Senate, including two years as Deputy Staff Director for the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee. Josh is a graduate of the University of Washington. He and his wife, Julia, have three children.
