Author's response to reviews Title: Comparison of Outpatient Health Care Utilization among Returning Women and Men Veterans from Afghanistan and Iraq Authors:

page 2 under conclusion: lines 1-3: ` “Recently discharged OEF/OIF women Veterans were more likely to seek VA health care than men veterans. But the intensity of use was similar between women and men VA care users.” Discussion: page 10 paragraph 2:lines 4-6 highlighted in yellow Although this analysis is reflective of only those Veterans who sought health care at a specific VA facility and may not reflect OEF/OIF Veterans in other VA networks or those using services outside the VA, the results of our study support our hypothesis that OEF/OIF women Veterans were more likely to seek VA care than men Veterans. But the intensity of use was similar between women and men users of VA care. The insufficient power, may explain why the intensity of utilization and interaction terms were insignificant. Conclusion: page 12:lines 1-2 Our results suggest that in recently discharged veterans women were more likely to seek VA care than men Veterans, indicating the need for comprehensive gender-specific outpatient care services for women within the VA healthcare system. Thank You for your constructive comments .We hope that we have sufficiently addressed the editors and reviewer’s concerns. Sincerely, Mona Duggal and Cynthia Brandt (for the authors)