Question: As a woman veteran I would like information about the Department of Veterans Affairs' Advisory Committee on Woman Veterans.

Answer: The advisory committee, established in 1983, advises the VA on issues and programs affecting women veterans.

Four new members were appointed in December. They are: Davy Coke of Poway, Calif., a retired Navy second class petty officer who served in Vietnam; Yanira Gomez of Germantown, Md., a former Army medical specialist who served in Iraq and is serving as national outreach officer for the Veterans of Foreign Wars; Gloria Maser of Alexandria, Va., an Army Reserve colonel and former deputy chief of staff for health affairs with the Multi-National Security Transition Command in Iraq; and Barbara Ward of Sacramento, Calif., a former Air Force nurse who is now deputy secretary for women and minority veterans affairs in the California Department of Veterans Affairs.

There are about 1.8 million women veterans. They constitute nearly 8 percent of the total veteran population and about 5 percent of all veterans who use VA health care.

VA estimates that by 2020 women veterans will make up 10 percent of the veteran population. For more information contact the VA Medical Center at 433-0600.

Q: I owe the VA money. Whom do I contact?

A: To inquire about an outstanding debt owed to the VA, contact: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Debt Management Center, P.O. Box 11930, St. Paul, MN 55111 or call (800) 827-0648 or (612) 970-5688 (fax). E-mail: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

The Debt Management Center also maintains a Web site: http://www.va.gov/debtman/.

If you have questions about your benefits as a veteran, call Fred Ballard at the Department of Veterans Affairs at 433-0049.