U.S. DEPARTMENT OF 

VETERANS AFFAIRS

DATA ON VETERANS OF 

 THE KOREAN WAR 

 

Assistant Secretary for Planning and Analysis

Office of Program and Data Analyses

June 2000
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VETERANS OF THE KOREAN WAR 

"When darkness threatened, you kept the torch of liberty alight. You 

kept the flame burning so that others all across the world could 

share it. You showed the truth inscribed on the wall, that freedom is 

not free." 

President Bill Clinton, at the Dedication of the Korean War 

Memorial, July 25, 1995.

 

____________________________

As we mark the 50th anniversary of the start of the Korean War, we 

present important facts about the veterans of that war period,

June 27, 1950 to January 31, 1955.

Historical Facts

• Actual hostilities occurred from June 27, 1950 to July 27, 1953. However, the 

war period was extended to January 31, 1955 by Congress to define a period 

of benefit eligibility in the wake of uneasy peace negotiations after July 27, 

1953.

• There were 6.8 million American men and women who served during the 

Korean War period, June 27,1950 to January 31, 1955.

• There were 54,200 deaths to Americans in service during the period of 

hostilities, June 27,1950 to July 27, 1953. Of these, 33,700 were actual 

battle deaths.

• There were 7,140 POW’s during the Korean War. Of these, 4,418 returned to 

the United States, 2,701 died, and 21 refused repatriation.

• There have been 131 recipients of the Congressional Medal of Honor among 

Korean War veterans.
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Demographic Characteristics

In mid-calendar year 2000:

• There are an estimated 3.9 million Korean War veterans in the U.S. and 

Puerto Rico, down about 21 percent from the nearly 5 million Korean War 

veterans in 1990. 

• Korean War veterans make up nearly 16 percent of the 24.4 million total 

veterans.

• An estimated 848,000 Korean War veterans also served in other war periods: 

171,000 in both WWII and Vietnam, 404,000 only in WWII, and 273,000 only 

in Vietnam.

• An estimated 86,300 Korean War veterans are women, making up 7 percent 

of the estimated number of all female veterans.

• The median age of Korean War veterans is estimated to be 69 years, with an 

estimated 336,500 under age 65, 3.25 million aged 65 to 74, and an 

estimated 363,600 aged 75 or older.

• The top five states with respect to the estimated number of Korean War 

veterans are: California (430,800); Florida (294,000); Texas (243,300); New 

York (220,100); and Pennsylvania (201,400), reflecting the geographic 

distribution of the veteran population in general. (See table for state veteran 

populations.)

According to the March 1999 Current Population Survey:

• Eighty percent of male Korean War veterans were married at the time of the 

survey, a proportion similar to non-veteran males of comparable age (65-74).

Between July 1999 and June 2000:

• There were an estimated 117,600 deaths among Korean War veterans.

According to the 1990 Census:

• The racial composition of the 4.9 million Korean War veterans in the U.S. 

was: 4.5 million white (92 percent); 339,400 African American (7 percent); 

30,400 American Indian (less than 1 percent), Eskimo or Aleut; 39,300 Asian 

or Pacific Islander (less than 1 percent); and 35,000 of other races (less than 

1 percent). There were an estimated 133,500 Hispanics (3 percent), who 

may be of any race, among Korean War veterans.
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By 2010:

• The number of Korean War veterans is projected to be just under 2.5 million, 

down 37 percent from the number estimated for 2000.

• Korean War veterans are projected to make-up 12 percent of the 20.1 million 

projected veterans.

• The number of female Korean War veterans is projected to be 61,600, 

making up nearly 5 percent of the projected number of all female veterans.

• The median age of Korean War veterans is projected to be 78.5. No Korean 

War veteran is projected to be under the age of 70. Most Korean War 

veterans, 56 percent, are projected to be between the ages of 75 and 79. 

About one-third, however, are projected to be 80 or older.

Socioeconomic Characteristics

According to the March 1999 Current Population Survey:

• The median personal income of male Korean War veterans in calendar year 

1998 was $24,000, compared to $17,900 for male non-veterans aged 65 to 74. 

Their respective median family incomes were $38,000 and $31,100.

• About 36 percent of male Korean War veterans had family incomes below 

$30,000 in 1998, while 35 percent had family incomes of $50,000 or more. Of 

non-veteran males aged 65 to 74, 48 percent had incomes under $30,000 and 

29 percent had incomes of $50,000 or more.

• About 18 percent of male Korean War veterans had less than a high school 

education, while nearly half had at least some college. For male non-veterans 

aged 65 to 74, the comparable percentages were 33 percent and 37 percent, 

respectively.

• Nearly 30 percent of male Korean War veterans had jobs. The vast majority, 

however, 70 percent, were no longer in the labor force. Among male nonveterans aged 65 to 74, 20 percent had jobs, while nearly 80 percent were no 

longer in the labor force.
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Health Care

Data from VA’s Patient Treatment File and the Outpatient Census for FY 1999 

show that:

• Of all the unique in-patients discharged from VA Medical Centers, 58,400, or 

16 percent, were Korean War veterans, the same percentage of Korean War 

veterans among all veterans. 

• Of all VA hospital in-patient discharges (a unique patient may have more than 

one discharge from a hospital during the fiscal year), 95,000 were among 

Korean War veterans.

• Of all unique patients treated in outpatient clinics, 466,700, or 15 percent, 

were Korean War veterans.

• There were about 34 million outpatient visits in VA in FY1999. Of these, 5.1 

million, or 15 percent, were among Korean War veterans. 

According to the March 1999 Current Population Survey:

• The overwhelming proportion of male Korean War veterans report having 

some type of health insurance. Only 3 percent report having no health 

insurance at all. Nearly three-quarters of male Korean War veterans report 

having some kind of private health insurance coverage, while 22 percent 

report having Medicare, Medicaid, or other government-provided insurance 

only.

• Nearly three-quarters of male Korean War veterans describe their health as 

“good,” “very good,” or “excellent,” compared to 66 percent of male nonveterans aged 65 to 74. Only 9 percent describe their health as “poor,” 

compared to 11 percent of their non-veteran counterparts. 

Other VA Benefits

• Of the 2.3 million veterans receiving service-connected compensation at the 

end of March 2000, 172,600 were Korean War veterans.

• Of the 370,200 veterans receiving pension at the end of March 2000, 86,300 

were Korean War veterans.

• Of the nearly 605,900 dependents of veterans receiving survivors’ benefits at 

the end of March 2000, 71,000 were survivors of Korean War veterans. More 

than 90 percent were surviving spouses. 
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• At the end of March 2000, one-half of Korean War veterans receiving serviceconnected compensation were rated 20 percent or lower; about 8 percent 

were rated 100 percent disabled. These proportions are comparable to those 

for all veterans receiving compensation.

• In March 2000, the aggregate monthly value of disability compensation 

awards to Korean War veterans was nearly 100 million dollars, about 8 

percent of the monthly value of all the awards made in that month. This 

proportion mirrors closely the proportion of all compensated veterans who 

are Korean War veterans.

• In March 2000, the aggregate monthly value of pension awards to Korean 

War veterans was nearly 38 million dollars, about 21 percent of the total 

monthly value of pension awards. This proportion is close to the proportion 

of all VA pensioners who are Korean War veterans. 

• In FY 1999, 9,800 Korean War veterans were interred in VA national 

cemeteries, representing 18 percent of all interments of veterans that year.

• More than 60,000 Korean War veterans were provided headstones or grave 

markers by VA in FY 1999.

By the end of FY 1999, a cumulative total of:

• About 2.4 million Korean War veterans have received education and training under 

the Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act of 1952 – the Korean War GI Bill. Of 

these, 1,213,000 received training in institutions of higher learning; 860,000 were 

trained in other schools; 223,000 received on-the-job training; and 95,000 received 

institutional on-farm training.

• More than 1.8 million Korean War veterans have used VA's Loan Guaranty program 

to purchase homes, for which VA guaranteed more than $32 billion.

• Nearly 79,000 disabled Korean War veterans have received vocational rehabilitation 

training through VA which helped them obtain gainful employment because their 

disabilities prevented them from resuming their former jobs.

• Over 803,000 Korean War veterans have been issued Veterans’ Special Life 

Insurance (VSLI) policies for Korean War veterans with a "face value" (death 

benefit) of $7.3 billion. Currently there are some 234,000 VSLI policies in-force with 

a face value of $2.7 billion. VA paid $184 million to VSLI beneficiaries in 1999.
Estimated Korean War (KW) and Total Veteran Population

For Each State, DC, and Puerto Rico, Mid-Year 2000

States Number * 

KW Veterans 

Number * 

Total Veterans

KW Veterans

As Percent of

Total Veterans

Alabama 70,100 402,800 17.4

Alaska 6,800 62,100 11.0

Arizona 76,200 437,700 17.4

Arkansas 40,300 242,400 16.6

California 430,800 2,623,500 16.4

Colorado 57,700 357,600 16.1

Connecticut 49,100 306,200 16.0

Delaware 11,400 74,000 15.4

District of Columbia 8,800 44,500 19.8

Florida 294,000 1,632,400 18.0

Georgia 95,200 654,400 14.5

Hawaii 17,700 110,700 16.0

Idaho 16,000 105,200 15.2

Illinois 155,400 979,100 15.9

Indiana 84,900 555,400 15.3

Iowa 45,700 268,400 17.0

Kansas 39,600 241,300 16.4

Kentucky 54,700 345,400 15.8

Louisiana 54,900 341,900 16.1

Maine 21,900 146,300 15.0

Maryland 75,100 497,900 15.1

Massachusetts 89,400 536,100 16.7

Michigan 128,100 883,200 14.5

Minnesota 67,100 430,300 15.6

Mississippi 37,500 217,600 17.2

Missouri 91,400 547,700 16.7

Montana 14,200 87,800 16.2

Nebraska 27,800 154,800 18.0

Nevada 34,200 183,300 18.7

New Hampshire 19,600 128,200 15.3

New Jersey 113,900 666,100 17.1

New Mexico 25,700 162,700 15.8

New York 220,100 1,390,600 15.8

North Carolina 107,000 675,700 15.8

North Dakota 9,400 53,700 17.5

Ohio 176,700 1,105,300 16.0

Oklahoma 56,300 318,200 17.7

Oregon 52,500 351,500 14.9

Pennsylvania 201,400 1,259,200 16.0

Rhode Island 16,600 99,800 16.6

South Carolina 56,800 362,800 15.7

South Dakota 12,800 69,300 18.5

Tennessee 77,100 488,700 15.8

Texas 243,300 1,533,900 15.9

Utah 21,500 126,500 17.0

Vermont 8,900 59,300 15.0

Virginia 106,200 668,400 15.9

Washington 92,000 599,500 15.3

West Virginia 31,900 184,500 17.3

Wisconsin 72,900 473,300 15.4

Wyoming 6,900 42,200 16.4

U. S. TOTAL 3,925,500 24,289,400 16.2

Puerto Rico 29,500 122,000 24.2

GRAND TOTAL 3,955,000 24,411,400 16.2

*Rounded to nearest 100 veterans
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Period of Service Definitions 

The definition of Korean War veteran differs among the data sources cited with 

respect to those who served in more than one war period. Namely:

• For the veteran population, Korean War veterans include all who have served 

in the Korean War no matter in what other periods they served.

• For the Current Population Survey (CPS), Korean War veterans are those for 

whom the Korean War was the last war period in which they served. 

Therefore, veterans who have served, for example, in the Korean War and 

Vietnam would be classified as Vietnam veterans, NOT Korean War veterans.

• For Loan Guaranty, National Cemetery Administration, and health care data, 

Korean War veterans are those for whom the Korean War was the last war 

period in which they served. (Same as CPS)

• For Compensation and Vocational Rehabilitation data, Korean War veterans 

are those whose last compensable disability was incurred during the Korean 

War. For example, if someone served during both the Korean War period and 

the Vietnam war era, but incurred his or her only disability (or disabilities) 

during the Korean War period, then that person is coded as a Korean War 

veteran.

• For Pension data, Korean War veterans are those for whom the Korean War 

was the first wartime period in which they served.

• For education and veterans’ life insurance data, Korean War veterans are 

those who have participated in the specific programs for Korean War veterans 

mentioned in the text.

For all of the data sources cited above, a Korean War veteran could have served 

in any venue, not just the Korean theater.

Data Sources (Not Noted in the Text)

• “Historical Facts” were by provided by VA’s Office of Public Affairs from 

information gathered by that office and the Department of Defense.

• Data on “Demographic Characteristics” come from VA’s official estimates and 

projections of the veteran population developed in the Office of Program and 

Data Analyses.

• Data on “Other VA Benefits” come from the Veterans Benefits Administration 

(VBA) and the National Cemetery Administration (NCA). 
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Contact

Dr. Robert E. Klein, Office of the Chief Actuary

Office of Program and Data Analyses

202-273-5101

robert.klein@mail.va.gov