Questions About Benefits for Veterans

1. I am interested in applying (for my father) for the VA Aid...

   Question - I am interested in applying (for my father) for the VA Aid & Attendance benefit. However, I have been told that if he receives a Navy pension he may be ineligible. Are these two mutually exclusive? Can he obtain the Aid & Attendance benefit if he remains in his home of 40 years?

2. FAQ: What Kinds of Home Equipment and Modifications Are Covered by Medicare, Medicaid, or the VA?

   Question - Excellent information on paying for medical equipment and home modifications. I would add that the limits for HISA grants have been raised to $6,800 for service connected disabilities and $2,000 for non service connected disabilities.
   FAQ 2 Expert Answers

3. Does the V.A. Have Pensions for Disabled, Low-Income Veterans?

   Question - A low-income veteran may be eligible for a pension from the V.A. if the veteran meets all four of the following conditions:
   FAQ 1 Expert Answer, 1 Community Answer

4. What are mom's health insurance options?

   Question - My father is 65 and collects Social Security. My mother is 63 and collects her own Social Security. My mother fell ill in January 2008 and was no longer able to work. She collected all the disability she could but now is just collecting Social Security. My father still works so that he can provide medical benefits for my mother...

5. Does any part of a VA widows pension amount have to be repaid under current laws?

   Question - If she provided her correct Social Security number and filled out the VA forms correctly, she shouldn't worry about the money she has already received. But there is no guaranty that she will continue receiving the VA pension amount, even though no new law affects these particular pension rules.
   1 Expert Answer, 1 Community Answer

6. Does the Veterans Administration have any claim on my parent's estate?

   Question - The VA's nursing home programs include VA-operated nursing home care units located at VA hospitals, contract community nursing homes and state homes. The majority of these facilities are state VA homes and the rules vary from state to state. In some states, the VA home charges a maximum monthly fee if a resident's assets are above a specified limit...
   1 Expert Answer

7. How do I apply for veterans' benefits?

   Question - We are an 80 year old couple living independently. I take care of my wife, who had a stroke 8 years ago. As a veteran I/we may be eligible to go to the Nevada Veterans' home when need occurs. How do I find and apply for this care when we need it? We have a living will/trust but no pre-need plan of what to do or how to apply for veterans' home assistance...

8. What happens when patients run out of Medicare days?

   Question - Help him apply for Medicaid, or apply for him, immediately. Even if it seems that he's "over the limit," he may qualify anyway. That's because he may be able to "spend down" the amount that he's over the Medicaid eligibility limit by paying that amount to the nursing home, with Medicaid paying the rest...
   1 Expert Answer, 1 Community Answer

9. What can I do help my brother, who has terminal lung cancer and refuses hospice services?

   Question - This must be an incredibly difficult situation for you and yours. It sounds as if your brother is quite adamant about not wanting to be a burden to anyone in his final months of life. It also sounds like he has made these decisions based on how he feels, both physically and emotionally, at least right now...
   1 Expert Answer

10. Does the Department of Veterans Affairs seek reimbursement for a veteran's nursing home care?

    Question - The VA won't seek reimbursement from your father's estate for VA-sponsored nursing home care. Whether the state seeks reimbursement is more complicated. If your father lives in a private or state-run nursing facility, rather than in one actually operated by the VA, there may be costs in addition to what the VA pays...
    1 Expert Answer

11. Will VA benefits be considered income and cause my mom to lose Medicaid?

    Question - My mother receives VA benefit to the caregiver. Will this be considered income and make her rent increase and loose medicaid? The money is paid to the caregiver as the fiduciary.

12. Will my husbands Social Security and VA pension go to the nursing home?

    Question - my husband has been approved for medicaid for nursing home. Im now told his Social Security and VA pension will go to nursing home. Can this be true?

13. If I have previously served in the Navy, will my new wife be eligible for any benefits?

    Question - Unfortunately, the VA health care program you are enrolled in does not cover your spouse. The only health care programs the VA offers to family members are for active duty service personnel,military retirees and some exceptional situations.
    1 Expert Answer

14. Are disabled veterans widows eligible for benefits?

    Question - Yes, there are benefits available to Veterans’ widows, if you meet the benefit qualifications. There are several benefit programs for spouses and families of deceased veterans. These are some of the largest:
    1 Sponsored Expert Answer

15. How long does it take to get VA benefits?

    Question - It is difficult to give an exact answer to this question because of the many variables involved with each individual’s situation. But generally, it will be four to six months between when you submit an application and when you start to receive your benefits.
    1 Sponsored Expert Answer

16. What college benefits are there for children of Veterans?

    Question - The children of Veterans who died or were permanently and totally disabled as a result of a service-connected disability can apply for Survivors’ & Dependents’ Educational Assistance (DEA). See eligibility details here.
    1 Sponsored Expert Answer

17. Do you lose VA benefits if you commit a felony?

    Question - This is determined on a case-by-case basis.
    1 Sponsored Expert Answer

18. Should you get Medicare Part B if you have veterans...

    Question - Whether you should get Medicare Part B will depend on your Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) benefits eligibility. The VA may determine you are not eligible for full coverage of some benefits, in which case you will be responsible for a co-pay to receive those benefits. Medicare Part B can help cover some of these co-pay costs...
    1 Sponsored Expert Answer

19. Are VA nursing homes free for veterans?

    Question - Yes, Veterans homes are free for Veterans if they meet certain requirements.
    1 Sponsored Expert Answer

20. Are there property tax benefits for Veterans?

    Question - No, there are no property tax benefits for Veterans of which I am aware (nor could I find any from my research).
    1 Sponsored Expert Answer

21. My mother was married 10 years to a veteran serving in the 2nd World War. Is she eligible for compensation?

    Question - He passed and she never remarried. My mother was his 2nd wife. His first wife passed away. He was in the Navy 1944-1946 and honorably discharged. Is she eligible for any compensation?

22. Why am I not eligible for veteran's benefits after the death of my husband?

    Question - Your husband was receiving one of two benefits. One is compensation for a disability he suffered as a direct result of his military service. In this case,it ceases at his death. The other benefit is a pension benefit for non-service connected reasons...
    1 Expert Answer, 1 Community Answer

23. Will my VA benefits change depending on the cost of living to the stave I'm moving to?

    Question - VA Benefits come from the federal government. They do not depend on which state you live in or cost of living differentials in different areas of the country.
    1 Expert Answer

24. Will the VA cover the installation and a ramp for a veteran's home?

    Question - There is a VA benefit called the Specialty Adapted Housing Grant. However, this benefit is only available to veterans who have a permanent and total service connected disability. This means the veteran’s disability is due to an illness or injury that occurred during his or her active duty. The VA dedetermines eligibility using their disability rating system...
    1 Expert Answer

25. How do we get the benefits that my father had a right to?

    Question - I’m going to assume your father was getting a non-service connected pension from the VA as opposed to service connected disability compensation. When your father’s VA benefits stopped, was he on Medicaid? If Medicaid was paying for his nursing home care, then he was only entitled to a Personal Needseeds Allowance of $90/mo...
    1 Expert Answer

26. Can I receive compensation for my health issues through my VA benefits?

    Question - As a Veteran, you may be eligible for the Non-Service Connected Pension from the VA. If you are single, you can qualify for up to $1,644/month. If you are married, you can qualify for up to $1,949/month. Your eligibility and the amount you can qualify for are dependent on several rules. First, you must have served at leasst one day during wartime...
    1 Expert Answer

27. How can we find out if my mother is eligible for VA survivor benefits?

    Question - I am going to assume that your father did not die from a service connected disability. Your mother's eligibility for a survivor's benefit is based on her income and her expenses for home care (she can pay you) and health insurance premiums. Her eligibility is not impacted by her being on hospice...
    1 Expert Answer

28. Are my husband and eligible to live in the Veterans Home?

    Question - If your husband served on active duty during wartime, both of you may be eligible for admmission to a State VA Home. The NJ Veterans Memorial Homes (Vineland, Menlo Park and Paramus) have a 2 year NJ residency requirement prior to admission. There is usually about a 6 month waiting list for each of these homes...
    1 Expert Answer

29. What benefits may I have from a retired veteran, after 27 years of marriage and divorced?

    Question - married for 27 years,to a service man,we divorced,remarried my husband died,I remarried again and divorced, I been by myself for the last16 years, Im 76 years old and asking for benefits from the time I was with my first husband in the army?

30. Do VA benefits go directly to a facility for their cost of care?

    Question - VA compensation (for service-connected disabilities) or VA pension with aid and attendance (for non-service connected disabilities) go directly to the claimant, not to the facility. The benefits are usually direct deposited into the claimant's checking account, just like social security.
    1 Expert Answer

31. How can I become my grandma's financial guardian in Alabama?

    Question - It is expensive and time consuming to become someone's guardian. There are better alternatives for your situation. Social Security has a Representative Payee Program. This is a financial management program for SS beneficiaries who are incapable of managing their SS payments. Family members or friends are usually appointed as representatives...
    1 Expert Answer

32. How does his retirement and VA disability affect our chances for Medicaid approval?

    Question - Your father's income does not impact your application for medicaid assistance. They will only consider your income, your wife's income and, if he works, your son's income.
    1 Expert Answer

33. Will the VA take all the assets that my husband and I share to pay for his care?

    Question - Let me answer your second question first. You do not automatically have power of attorney over your husband’s money. I suggest you take care of getting power of attorney as soon as possible. It is a good idea to name an alternate power of attorney in case anything happens to y...
    1 Expert Answer

34. Can a Veteran receive child support benefits?

    Question - Child support payments are determined separately from Veteran benefits, and qualifications to receive child support vary state to state. Being a Veteran has no direct impact on an individual’s ability to qualify to receive child support payments.
    1 Sponsored Expert Answer

35. Do VA benefits cover PTSD?

    Question - Yes, but now the VA must be the only doctor that can approve for your benefits. If you go to a doctor outside the VA, they will not accept that you have PTSD. You must sign up for a VA I.D. card and see the VA doctor to get help.
    1 Community Answer

36. Are VA benefits retroactive?

    Question - Are VA benefits retroactive?

37. Do VA "Aid and Attendance" benefits preclude you from Medicaid and state assistance?

    Question - This is definitely an area where the VA Disability Pension Benefit for Aid & Attendance could turn out being more of a foe than a friend and your hesitancy is well warranted. In some cases the VA Disability Pension can have an effect on an individual’s eligibility for Medicaid benefits and why y...
    1 Expert Answer

38. Can my mother receive social security and a VA pension?

    Question - Yes, your mother can receive both social security and VA Disability Pension at the same time. To qualify she would have to be over the age of 65 and not remarried. The purpose of the Non-service Connected VA Disability pension benefit is to supplement low or no income veterans and surviving spouses...
    1 Expert Answer

39. VA won't accept my guardianship documentation for my father.

    Question - Yes, it is true. Competency and incompetency determinations may be made either by VA rating decisions or by a court decree or both. VA is not required to recognize a court-appointed fiduciary for purposes of payment of VA benefits [38 CFR 3.850(a)] 9http://law.justia.com/us/cfr/title38/38-1.0.1.1.4...
    1 Expert Answer

40. What is the VA Aid and Attendance Benefit program?

    Question - Unfortunately this is a common response. The VA Aid & Attendance benefit program is a descriptor commonly used in the civilian arena when providing information about the VA Non-Service Connected Pension. “Aid & attendance” is actually one tier of a three tiered benefit known in the VA sys system as VA Pension or Disability Pension...
    1 Expert Answer, 5 Community Answers

41. Can you keep an inheritance and still draw a VA pension?

    Question - If your friend's VA pension is compensation for a service-connected disability, the inheritance has no affect on his disability pension. A service connected disability compensation award is made by guidelines that determine a veteran's conditions and the resulting degree of disability incurred during...
    1 Expert Answer

42. How does she document the pay she receives from him for caregiving?

    Question - There are a number of different Veterans Benefit Programs, but I will assume that your mother's ex-husbnad is seeking Veteran's Aid and Attendance Housebound Benefits. As such he must have less than $14,457 of countable income annually. Total annual health care expenses are deducted from his total...
    1 Expert Answer

43. If I have Medicare Parts A and B plus Tricare, do I need more insurance?

    Question - If you are enrolled in Medicare Part A and Medicare Part B and you also have TRICARE for Life, you almost certainly do not need any other supplemental health insurance. TRICARE for Life[military.com] is a special program specifically designed for people who are also enrolled in Medicare...
    1 Expert Answer

44. Will the VA pay for a nursing home?

    Question - It is possible that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) may provide nursing home care for your father. Anyone who served on active duty in the military may be eligible for at least some VA benefits, and the VA maintains its own nursing homes around the country...
    1 Expert Answer

45. What are a veteran's benefits?

    Question - My husband is 92 years old a WWII veteran and recipient of the Purple Heart. He is frail, bedridden and needs 24/7 nursing care. I am 81 years old and can no longer care for him at home. Is there a place he can go as a veteran?

46. Wil the VA cover Mom's assisted living?

    Question - YES! However, I don't know if your father would have had to received money from the VA for a service connected disability. The VA will assign a percentage to the disability. For example, my father was 100% service connected and my mother is entitled to living assistance money...
    3 Community Answers

47. Is There Extra V.A. Help for Veterans Who Are Housebound or Can't Care for Themselves?

    Question - A low-income veteran with wartime service who is unable to care for himself or is disabled and housebound might be eligible for V.A. Aid & Attendance (A&A) or Housebound benefits, which can be paid in addition to a low-income, wartime veteran's basic pension...
    FAQ 1 Expert Answer, 1 Community Answer

48. Is there financial help available for a retired veteran and spouse for elder housing or a retirement community in MA?

    Question - There is a home loan program through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) that might be able to provide you with a loan guaranty for the purchase of a residence. The VA loan guaranty program includes condominiums and residential coops, so it should also apply to purchase of a residence in an elder housing or retirement community...
    1 Expert Answer, 1 Community Answer

49. Can you use benefits from VA and Medicare coverage in conjunction?

    Question - Your stepfather can use both. For any specific medical treatment, he can choose to use either the Medicare or VA system. And sometimes he can use both for the same treatment. Here's how it works. If he's treated at a VA facility, Medicare cannot pay any of the copayments that the VA charges him...
    1 Expert Answer

50. How do I find out if my father qualifies for a veterans funeral?

    Question - As a starting point, contact the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. Its website provides a fairly comprehensive Q and A section on burial benefits -- along with contact information should you need additional guidance. A word to the wise: Not surprisingly, the representatives at the VA...
    1 Expert Answer

51. Will marriage affect my husband-to-be's VA benefit eligibility?

    Question - When trying to figure out whether marriage -- and your investments -- would make your husband-to-be ineligible for VA medical benefits, he has to learn whether his eligibility for those benefits is based in part on his income and asset level...
    1 Expert Answer

52. Are long term care benefits considered income by the VA?

    Question - Even though the long term care policy that Mom has is considered insurance, the monthly benefit amount would be documented as "other income"and would count toward her recurring monthly medical expenses and would need to be applied accordingly.
    1 Expert Answer

53. Who qualifies for VA benefits?

    Question - In short, Veterans’ benefits are for Veterans and their spouses. But the qualifications for specific benefits vary because they are intended for different needs.
    1 Sponsored Expert Answer

54. What forms are used to file for Veterans benefits?

    Question - As of June 15, 2010, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has two shortened forms to be used for benefits applications. For pension benefits and the Veterans Aid and Attendance Disability Pension, use form 21-527EZ. Pension claims are need-based. For Compensation Claims, use 21-526EZ. Compensation is for Veterans who have service-related conditions...
    1 Sponsored Expert Answer

55. Are Nation Guardsmen eligible for Veterans benefits?

    Question - National Guardsmen are eligible for Veterans’ benefits on the same basis as other Veterans. They must have been called to active duty for a minimum of 90 days and at least one day of that service must have been during a recognized war peri...
    1 Sponsored Expert Answer

56. How do VA benefits work?

    Question - VA Aid and Attendance Pension Benefits, also known as Veterans Disability Pension Benefits, apply to qualifying Veterans as well as their spouses and widows. There are three criteria the government looks at to determine if applicants qualify for benefits:
    1 Sponsored Expert Answer

57. Is there funeral expense assistance available to a veteran's widow?

    Question - This is a good question. Many times a spouse of a veteran is eligible for certain benefits during her life. Usually these are in the form of financial assistance with assisted living or nursing home costs.
    1 Expert Answer

58. Where can a veteran find help with periodic needs?

    Question - I am a 60 year old disabled veteran that is periodically in need of outside care. Although my food needs are not an issue, I have a cat that need to be cared for while I am away. I am receiving VA disability compensation, and SSDI. Can someone help, or direct me to an agency that can help me with these periodic needs...

59. How do I find out if Mom is eligible for a veteran's widow benefit?

    Question - My father served in the Korean war and passed away in 1998. My mother is now in a nursing home in New Hampshire and I was told she is eligable for money each month from a widow benefit? How do I find out how to apply for this for her?

60. Are there VA benefits to be a paid family caregiver?

    Question - The Veterans Aid and Attendance Pension Benefit can be used as a source of money to pay family caregivers to provide care at home. This benefit, under the right circumstances, can provide up to $1,949 a month in additional income to pay family members to provide care at home.
    1 Expert Answer

61. Can I receive veteran's benefits again from my first late husband?

    Question - Yes, you may be able to since you were married to the veteran at the time of his service-connected death and are not currently married, you may be eligible for the [Restored Entitlement Program for Survivors (REPS)] (http://www.workworld.org/wwwebhelp/veterans_affairs_va_benefits_dependency_and_indemnity_compensation_dic_...
    1 Expert Answer

62. Are there benefits available for a veteran's widow whose income is too high for Medicaid and Aid and Attendance?

    Question - You're in a very tough spot, but it's one that many thousands of people find themselves in. Although it may seem that your mother-in-law's income is too high for her to be eligible for Medicaid coverage of nursing home care, you may be surprised to find that's not the case...
    1 Expert Answer

63. As a veteran's widow, what home health care benefit is Mom eligible for?

    Question - As the widow of an eligible service connected veteran, Mom may be eligible to receive VA Death Pension Benefits to help supplement the cost of in home health care services. Since there are a number of [criteria that may affect eligibility] (http://www.vba.va.gov/bln/21/pension/spousepen...
    1 Expert Answer

64. Will the houses affect their Medicaid eligibility?

    Question - Medicaid law differs significantly from state to state and the Medicaid law in most states does not cover assisted living costs. I urge you to contact an experienced elder law attorney. You can find one in your area by going to the website of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys.
    1 Expert Answer, 2 Community Answers

65. Is Mom responsible for paying back VA pension if the VA made the mistake?

    Question - When dealing with the issue of paying the VA back for overpayment, you should not go it alone. You should contact a veterans service organization that will provide a service organization representative, also known as a veterans service officer at no cost...
    1 Expert Answer

66. How long does it take to get a veteran into a veteran's nursing home?

    Question - It is difficult to assign an average or usual length of time for this process. The time it takes to get a Veteran into a Veterans Nursing Home varies vastly from state to state.
    1 Expert Answer

67. Is there any financial aid for a child to quit their job and care for their parent?

    1 Expert Answer