Who Qualifies for VA Medical Benefits?

My friend served 4 years in the USAF in the 1970s (post Viet Nam) and is under the impression that he is not eligible for any VA benefits. In fact, his understanding is that only those veterans who earned a full pension after career in the military are eligible. The VA website (https://www.va.gov/healthbenefits/apply/veterans.asp) speaks only to eligibility for those who served after 1980 or who had special circumstances . It does not address his circumstance. What should he expect?

Dose anyone ever answer the comments on here?

I am an Honorably Discharged USAF Veteran (1963-1967) and used VA Benefits to obtain my MBA, I'm going on 78 years of age (still working) however my family income is relatively high due to my wife who also works. Can I qualify for any type of VA Medical Benefits particularly the Drug Benefit.

Iam a Army veteran with a honorable discharge I had a medical profile in basic training because of my knee of no running, jumping,stupping,crawling or no pro long standing, or marching will that be in my medical records and do I qualifi for disability. I have been trying to get my medical records but I must not no the wright way of getting them. I served from May of 1972 to May of 1975. thank you

My mother was married for 11 years to my father who was in the army for 20 years...she is in need of hearing aids...is there any coverage for the widows of veterans?

My brother served on active duty but saw no combat in the Army. He received an honorable discharge. He developed severe schizophrenia and has been housed in the psych ward of the Coatesville VA for decades. Now in his old age (62) they are kicking him out because they say he did not receive his disability through the service. This is the only home he has known for decades. The only place that will take him is a bed-bug infested snake pit. With all the taxes we pay that go to the military how can they rationalize kicking him out of the VA now? He only has his Social Security as an income.

My brother spent 22 years in the USAF, now 82 years old--is he eligible for VA benefits.

you have to have served in wartime to qualify for Aid & Attendance

My father was in the service for 2-3 years-between WW2 and Korea. He and my mother were married for over 25 years and then divorced. Neither one remarried. My father died in 2004. I s my mother eligible for any medical benefits from the military? She needs home health care.

My father was in the service for 2 years. He was married to my mother for 25 years and then they divorced. Is my mother entitled to health care benefits such as home health care taker? My father is deceased and neither one remarried.

My husband was in the navy during none war would he have medical insurance

My dad recently qualified for Medicaid and VA Benefits. is he allowed to keep both?

I joined the Marine Corps in December of 1990 before Operation Desert Storm....I was in basic training at Paris Island when the ground war started. I joined through the 8th Tank Battalion reserve unit in Mattydale NY. I was injured in basic training, sent to Beaufort Naval Hospital, then MRP, and ultimately to a Casual Platoon after being Honorably Medically Discharged. My brother and Friends from the War keep urging me to ask about this and I never have until now as I never finished boot camp. One pushed me to ask so I am finally so at least I can answer them and myself once and for all

Are IRA distributions considered income for VA health benefits

I was a Navy Wave from 1964 to 1967....a 3 year tour. I was in the hospital various times. But not for getting hurt...I had kidney problems plus a small surgery. I also have Fibromyalgia, and on Oxy, plus other pills...I should have the patches but, can't afford them. Last time I checked they were about a thousand dollars....and the cream was about a hundred dollars. Any ideas if I would qualify?

My husband served 8 years is he covered? Am I as his spouse covered for va health benefits?

I served 6 years in the Navy aboard submarines. Am I entitled to VA medical benefits?

I was in the reserves while on active duty I was injuryed and received a medical discharge an I entitled to any va benefits.

I served seven(7) years in the Texas National Guard in my younger days. Does this give me any eligibility for VA medical benefits?

I'm hundred percent service-connected disability will my new wife qualify for VA Medical?

My 88 year old father served in the Navy. This was not during "war time". He never applied for VA health benefits and is on Medicare . Would he benefit or even qualify for benefits from VA?

I'm very disappointed in the V.A.. My father, a Korean war veteran (you know the forgotten war) who is 84 was denied V.A. benefits due to his retirement income was more than what the V.A. allowed. It's pretty sad to try to better ones self life after serving his country. I see the disappointment in his teary eyes. What would be amazing is, if my father could go back in time to 1951 when this country was needing help in Korea, and knowing what he knows today , would he serve his country now? John F. Kennedy once said .....ask not what your country can do for you, ask what can you do for your country. There's some truth in that.

Why does my husband not qualify for any V.A. benefits? He was honorably discharged due to an emergency at home, his years of service were not in active war time yet if so he would have remained & would qualify. I think no matter the circumstances any person that serves should qualify for something & or be on a time served /evaluation system. All veterans no matter their time of service should get some type insurance etc.

I've been married since 1999. I have a question. My husband goes to the VA but does not like to ask questions of course. I'm have some problems & we are financially strapped. Someone has told me that even though we were not married when he was in the service, I could still be covered as his spouse under the VA and go there is this true?

I am a combat Vietnam vet. Who just got married . can my wife use the va

yes, VA has their own homes; well, they're state run, so goes through the VA in each state, not the Federal VA medical clinics, though if you're getting VA medical care might make it easier, but not necessary; think either way the more issue is going to be his diagnoses; many regular healthcare facilities/homes will not take people - veterans otherwise - with those; they have to a place designed especially for them - at least that's what my dil's grandfather's family's been going through with him; he's had to go to at least 2 out of state places; granted, they're close to the borders so not that far and actually not, considering where they live, any farther than the closest state VA home would be

I am working part time and do not have Heath care. How do I apply for it. And can I get any financial help? And does my wife qualify for any benefits?

My 87-year-old father who was in the Navy as a young man now needs to apply for VA benefits for the first time in order to help with the cost of an assisted living facility is it too late for him to apply for benefits.

Doesn't really answer the question. My son served 17 years and has PTS and is receiving disalibilty. Why isn't he covered through VA?

I served active duty in the navy , from 1970 to 1072 at naval air station rota spain, I guess i,am a Vietnam era vet.i would never take away from anyone who was in country, they are the real deal. My question is, if we're all vets, why can't we get on a military base just because we did not retire from the service? We all did our service for our country, why not..

I am VIETNAM veteran, have VA medical primary, HUMAN GOLD HMO secondary, been in good health 3 weeks ago had 1st emergency-requested VA hospital LAS VEGAS-denied discovered I had multiple blood clots lungs and legs. VA refuses to pay because I have medicare! VA book says do not cancel in case of budget cuts-real reason is they will not pay if you have medicare-what a scam! I have a primary DR. at nearby clinic was getting blood pressure pills. within past 12 months! try that by saying need to see a VA dr within 2yrs!!!

I served four years active duty in the air force, with three of these years outside the U.S. But, because of my teacher's pension, I am not entitled to veteran's medical benefits. My friend was in for two years, with six months active duty in Niagra Falls. His pension is much larger than mine and he gets V.A. medical benefits. It is just not right!

My friends husband had Alzheimer's and had to pay for the VA nursing home. Is it because it was not service related?

I am taking early retirement from my teaching position due to health reasons. I am going to lose my health care insurance which is provided by the school district, which I pay for. When I leave the school district I will lose my health insurance. Will I be able to see a doctor at the local VA clinic if I need to? I have going to the VA clinic for years for blood work and medication, by appointment. My teacher's retirement money is minimal and I can't afford personal health insurance.

If I have 100 percent va medical, do I still need to apply for Medicare at age 65.

I had a terrible experiance in Dec.2013. My dad is on va insurance & fell very ill very fast. I had to take him to the e.r. I found out he didn't have coverage in his own town so had to drive him 5 hrs.away to the nearest v.a.hosp. He was diagnosed with a bloodclot & terminal cancer & given days to live. My question is why would he not be covered in an urgent crisis in any nearby hosp.? Was it because v.a. doesn't cover vets in all hospitals or is it that not all hospitals except v.a.medical coverage? I know the local hosp. I would have liked to take him to at the time excepts medicaid. My question is, Why wouldn't all v.a. medical recipients beable to get e.r. treatment in any hospital anywhere in the country? Especially since they served our country & contributed more to society than medicaid recipients (aka wefare). It just doesn't seem right to me. Thankyou

If I get a basic pension of $346.00 monthly, can I still get aid and attendance benefits that was approved November 23, 2010? I was told by the VA rep that the 346.00 included A & A but I'm paying my caregiver $1,100 a month which leaves me with almost no money on a monthly basis.

Can a medical officer claim his own disability that would impact his retirement benefit. If he divorces his wife is her payment based on his full retirement or minus his disability payment

I have a brother-n-law who served for 4 years, and injured himself in a jeep accident (drunk driving). He gets full benefits, although he is far from disabled. His best friend who served 5 years. he was not injured or discharged due to disability, and as has full treatment benefits at the VA hospital as well. BTW, both are worth over $1m. I'm confused on how they get free health care and most others do not.

Well I served ! Proudly. US Army active Three years And five reserve. I would have served longer? Well things happen. I Did not use the GI bill or guranteed home loan. Now that I need a little help in the form of dental I am Not even entitled to that So in my opinion I waisted my time serving Our united states for Nothing! GREAT? Fed up with it. Ohh to be eligable? One must have a service connected disability? It does not matter I assume how LARGE or small But the people who served the same but un harmed? Just are Not important enough to care for That is sad....

What about the spouse of a veteran that has Alzheimer's and will eventually need long term care? If we get to the point to where we can't take care of her anymore?

Just a update since this showed up on my feed this morning; not sure why; but dad's VA clinic has since updated its policy that you can go in on a walk-in non appointment basis now; may have to wait, which is typical and may not be able to see your primary, which is also typical but at least you can go now. Also if your wind up at the ER outside of clinic hours, which would also be typical under the new policy and you want to be under VA you can't do that locally you have to go to the VA medical center because you have to get special approval otherwise, like we got last year, but it has to go through your VA primary, which can't be done if he's not there; remember last year it was during clinic hours and his VA primary is the one who initiated it, so that's why we it happened that way (outside of hours) this year we just told them to do it through Medicare. However, then we it came time for discharge since he still wanted to use his VA primary that's how we were discharged is back to VA. Also in an earlier situation I didn't get into before but it's related to this, he'd been seeing a VA specialist who then left so they "fee-based" him to a closer outside one, which then they got one in again and he would have had to go back to the VA so we swtiched him then to Medicare, which they don't like you doing all this but they have to go along; they can't make you go with VA but they don't like it when you have both.

MY EX-HUSBAND HAS RETIRED I NEED TOO KNOW IF I AM ENTITLED TOO ANY OF HIS MONEY.

When listing assets on an application for VA benefits, how are Trusts to be handled? Specifically, Medicaide will exclude assets (i.e. cash value life insurance) owned by a Trust for more than 5 years. Is the same or similar true for the VA?

My dad has both Medicare and VA benefits,as well as a Medicare supplement through his state retirement. He does have a VA clinic right up from his house where he sees the doctor as his primary for his preventative care;however, when he fell back in the spring and needed to see one on an emergency, that wasn't so easy; if not for a cancellation, I was told at the time he would not be able to see his VA doctor - and further was told he needed to still have an outside primary doctor - he had not seen one of those for 5 years from before they built the VA clinic close to him. However, I was also told later that rule has been changed, or at least was in process being phased in clinic by clinc, so that might be something you'd want to check into. In our case, his regular appointment was in just in a few days, but he was supposed to follow up with his dr. the next day after going to the ER the next day after his fall, which he didn't understand but he woke up that morning with severe pain in his neck and not being able to turn it; his solution was to go to the chiropractor who then wouldn't see him without a medical clearance so that's why we were trying to get him in to see his VA dr. However, he still wouldn't give him one without the X-ray results from the local ER, which is understandable. But that's where things get sticky. They were supposed to request them, which either wasn't done or it wasn't received or they weren't sent; either way by the time I got there to take him back for his scheduled appt. they still didn't have them and didn't even realize it or that this appt. was even connected to his previous visit and involved this neck pain until I pointed all this out and that the doctor was going to want to see those results when he saw him, or at least was going to need to, which even though they didn't agree, was right, but I at least was able to get them - finally when I got a nurse involved and not just the front office - faxed over and put in his chart for when he saw the doctor. But what really helped all this along was the fact that his head wound he received from the fall abscessed and ruptured while we were dealing with all of this; that got them going! It also enabled the doctor to order him for wound care treatment at the wound center at the local hospital. I know this is long but part of why I'm saying all this is that had that not happened he would not have been able to get that care locally; they would have required him to go to the VA Wound Care Center, which in his case is 2 hrs. away, at least for them to pay for it. Now, in his case, of course he has Medicare, but as has been pointed out that in itself would not have paid for all of it; as I said also in his he does have a supplement, but as has also been said and I didn't realize, there are a number of people who do not, since they have to pay for it. In his case, that is one of the responsible things my dad did; he went to work for the state mainly for these types of benefits, which are paying off now. Anyway, point being, as has been said VA Healthcare is not insurance; you have to do it the way they say; he had to go to Wound Care starting out 3x/wk.; that would have been a pain to travel 2 hours to do that, even if, as in his case, they would pay and they do also provide transportation, but he was in no shape to do that, but no he wasn't bedridden, at least not after he started getting the care, which they told me was the criteria otherwise to not have to make the trip and get the care locally, if that rupture hadn't happened in the clinic, enabling him to get it that way on an emergency basis. There is more but this has gotten long; I may do it later; overall VA has been good but we'd never had an emergency before, so this was somewhat of an experience. Just something to think about

spell out the priority system in more detail, who gets graded how?

Can a wife file for benefits on line? My husband is a WWII vet housed in a center in Norman Oklahoma. I am in Italy on a Mission, I would like to have base access to medicine.

I was in an accident with the recruiter,when i was going to spend the night at the hotel and be sword in the next day. After that the army didn't want me, but I was hurt with the recuiter,I have suffer 5-bulging disc in my back I'm in pain all day long. I recently had surgery on my back to relieve some of the pain. I haven't been compensated by no one. What can I do ?

we would have never known about VA benefits for my inlaws (ages late 80's) if not for an assisted living coordinator inquiring if my father in law had served in the military - he served overseas in WWII. However, my father in law would have never ever been able to fill out, let alone, comprehend how to handle ALL the intricate paperwork required by the government for such benefits. If not for my husband's diligence in pursuing the massive paperwork and phone calls, it is easy to see how the "red tape" of working through anything government related, would make one throw up their hands and say "it's not worth the hassle". I know that if left on his own, my 87 year old father in law would have never been able to do any of this on his own.

dUE CARE MUST BE EXERCISED IN MAKING STATEMENTS. dENTAL CARE FOR s/c DENTAL INJURYS OR 100% DISABLED s/c (S/C SERVICE CONNECTED) MEDICAL CARE CAN BE SOME DISTANCE FROM THE VETERAN AND BE ADVISED YOU NEED TO USE THEIR FACILITIES - mEDICARE IS A INSURANCE PLAN / v.a. IS A HEALTHCARE PROGRAM -NOT INSURANCE.

Hi r=rock, Thank you very much for your comment. Here are a few Ask & Answer pages that you may find helpful: ( http://www.caring.com/questions/va-and-medicare ) and ( http://www.caring.com/questions/va-coverage-with-medicare ). In additon, if you would like to post your own Ask & Answer page, you can do so here: ( http://www.caring.com/ask ). Take care -- Emily | Community Manager

I have the same question as Harristv. I know my husband is eligible for both and Im tryng to find out if Va would be better alone. thanks

examples of eligibility and non-eligibility

Hi harristv. Thanks for your question. We have a couple Ask & Answer conversations on this topic. They are ( http://www.caring.com/questions/va-and-medicare ) and ( http://www.caring.com/questions/va-coverage-with-medicare ). I hope they help! Take care, Jeff | Caring.com Community Team

Is a veteran eligible for VA benefits and medicare? How does one find out if they are eligible for both.

Hi dolo, Thank you for your question. You can find an online version on the VA Form-10-10EZ, here: ( https://www.1010ez.med.va.gov/sec/vha/1010ez/ ). I hope that helps! Take care -- Emily | Community Manager

Where online can I get VAForm-10-10EZ??

Can a veteran who now has Cancer be elgible for V A medical benefits.

I was married for 17 years before my divorced. My ex remarried.I would like to know if I'm eligible for any medical coverage(EYE DOCTOR&DENTIST) benefits.I never remarried.

Thank you for this link! It is getting me going on inquiries.