VA Aid and Attendance is a little known benefit that assists Veteran’s, their sick spouse or the widow/widower of a Veteran pay for the cost of in-home care, assisted living or skilled nursing care.
The ground rules are fairly simple:
- The Veteran must have served during a period of way for at least one day, been in the service a total of 90 days and been discharged with any designation other than “dishonorable”. You did not have to be in a combat situation.
- There is a need for care with several “activities of daily living” (ADL’s). These could be grooming, bathing, dressing, cooking, eating.
- You must be spending your family income on the cost of care. Example: income is $4,000, your Assisted Living Community is $4,500.00
- Your family assets must be within VA guidelines. Please note that as of this writing, there is NO “look-back” period like you’ve heard about with Medicaid.
Even though these rules don’t sound complicated, we suggest that every family thinking of applying seek professional help. Not providing proper information or omitting an important document can cause excessive delay or denial. Also, you would never want to move funds, give funds, homes, land, investments, etc. to qualify for the VA benefit that may hurt your chances for Medicaid eligibility if Skilled Care were ever needed.
NOTE: IT IS IMPORTANT TO USE A VA ACCREDITED ATTORNEY OR AGENT FOR INFORMATION PERTAINING THE BENEFIT.
Please contact us directly at: rick@carolinaestatecounsel.com with any questions on the VA or Medicaid application process.
Consultations are free and provided by Kevin Huston, VA Accredited Attorney
