Little Known Benefit Available for Older Veterans

Veterans of any age can get assistance from the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (USDVA) but a little known benefit is available for older Veteran’s. This benefit is called Improved Pension with aid and attendance. This benefit helps pay for assisted living, nursing home care and home care for veterans 65 years old or older or their surviving spouse. For older veterans or their surviving spouse receiving this benefit could mean the ability to stay in their home longer with the aid of a home care provider or the ability to move to an assisted living facility sooner when this type of care is needed.
This aid and attendance benefit is a reimbursement: claimant must spend the money on care in order to receive the benefit thus the veterans and his/her surviving spouse can have some financial means and still apply for this benefit. Another unique feature of this benefit is that, while the veterans must have served at least one day during war and 90 days after he/she is NOT required to have a combat related injury or disability.
Many older veterans are not aware that the United States Congress in 1979 passed an improved pension program that made this benefit available to veterans or their surviving spouse. For the veterans who are already in assisted living, receiving care at home or who are in a nursing home these benefits can be a tremendous help to the family. Many World War II veterans are in their 80’s or 90’s thus their sons and daughters could well be in their 60’s and facing retirement issues of their own. What tremendous help this benefit could be to these families.
The above “snap-shot” of this benefit may make applying for this benefit sound easy, it is not. There is a good deal of application paperwork and the veterans or their surviving spouse must qualify in 3 areas, they must be medically qualified, income qualified, asset qualified and they must also have an Honorable or regular discharge from the service.
For answers to questions related to the aid and attendance benefit please contact War Era Veterans at www.WarEraVet.com or call 1(800) 901-0940 (War Era Veterans is not part of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs but a separate Veterans Advocacy Company.)

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