Veteran care can have a wealth of benefits if you can find them. There seems to be a lot of misleading information on a little known Dept. of Veterans Affairs benefit called the Aids and Attendance Pension Benefit Program. The Aids & Attendance Pension Benefit has been an entitlement for over 61 years, but the public has known little about it.
The Aids and Attendance Pension Benefit provides veterans with quality home care in the comfort of their own home. This benefit allows veterans and their spouses about $2,000 dollars a month for home care. The benefit begins providing care on the first of the month after the application is submitted to the VA.
The Aid covers the cost of caregivers in the home, including care given by the veterans sons and daughters but does not include care by the spouse. If there is no live in care then the money can go into assisted living or a nursing home.
In 2012 there were approximately 1.7 million WWII veterans living but only 38,000 of them and their spouses took advantage of the Aid. It has been difficult in the past finding information about this program even when calling the VA office; VA employees did not know about the program because they just had not been educated about it.
There are some misunderstandings about who is eligible for the benefit. This benefit is for veterans or their surviving spouse with at least one day of wartime service and honorably discharged. Most people don’t know that the VA immediately classifies a veteran as disabled when they turn 65 years old. A veteran doesn’t need to have a service related injury or be determined disabled to qualify for the Aid but certain medical and financial requirements must also be met. A part of the approval process is based on the veterans’ income and material assets.
When applying it is essential to beware of some of the scams. There are many online scammers promising to complete your application form for a certain price or taking a percentage of the money received from the benefit. Downloading the forms and applying on the VA website is free; and free assistance is provided throughout the application process. Beware of scammers trying to take advantage of you and trying to steal the benefits you have earned.
You also need to be aware that there are some unethical financial planners working from or associated with assisted living communities. These financial planners are trained to understand Medicaid, Medicare, moving assets and finances. These planners especially prey on seniors and families who have a tough time understanding how to pay for these services and they are looking for people eligible for the maximum amount of benefits.
Once approved for the Aids & Attendance Pension; it can be a wonderful benefit for veterans.
