FORT BENNING, Ga. – Members of the Fort Benning community

FORT BENNING, Ga. – Members of the Fort Benning community do their shopping at the post’s exchange Dec. 20. New categories of patrons are now allowed to use Department of Defense exchanges, commissaries, and recreational services under a new law that took effect Jan. 1. The new access rules, which also apply to Coast Guard facilities, cover four new categories of patron: Purple Heart recipients, disabled veterans, former prisoners of war, and those designated as caregivers for veterans. Prior to the new law, those allowed to use commissaries and exchanges were service members, their dependents, veterans with 100 percent VA disability ratings, military retirees, and in certain cases, government civilian employees. The new privileges come about under the Purple Heart and Disabled Veteran Equal Access Act of 2018, which also allows access to Coast Guard facilities. The act is a provision of the 2019 National Defense Authorization Act, which became law in August.