With Veterans Day approaching us (11/11), I wanted to see what kind of help veterans can avail via veteran’s pension program and how Assisting Hands can help with that.

From the latest statistics, over 1.5 million veterans and their surviving spouses are eligible for over twenty two billions of dollars a year in VA pensions to help pay for long-term care such as assisted living, nursing home and home care.

The pensions are called “Aid and Attendance” and “Housebound.” Many are not getting the benefits they are eligible for, because they lack the knowledge of what programs are available and don’t know how to file for pension benefits.

Although many veterans are eligible for pensions, filling out the necessary forms and understanding the filing process can often be overwhelming and frustrating.

At Assisting Hands, we help the Veterans navigate through the complex filing process and get them the help that they need as soon as possible.

A few key points:

• Both professional caregivers and spouses or family members of veterans may get tax-free money for caring for veterans or surviving spouses. The VA program is called Aid and Attendance or Housebound pension and requires the claimant to meet eligibility requirements to receive the money. A veteran with a dependent for example, may receive as much as $25,000/year to use to pay for un-reimbursed long-term care
• VA pension benefits can cover a portion of nursing home care if the veteran or surviving spouse is paying for the care out-of-pocket. Since with some exceptions, assisted living is un-reimbursed by insurance, the money from the VA pension can be the difference that allows the veteran or surviving spouse to afford the cost of assisted living.
• The veteran can choose any assisted living, home care provider or nursing home they want. It does not have to be a VA facility. The provider does not have to be VA certified and any physician can document the care needs of the claimant.
• Aid and Attendance and Housebound pensions are non-service-connected pensions, which are for veterans whose disability or death was not caused by or aggravated in the line of duty in the active military. These pensions are not to be confused with VA service-connected disability compensation payments, which are for veterans whose disability was caused by an illness or combat-related injury while in the line of duty in the active military
• The care-needs and the rates of payment are the main difference between Aide and Attendance vs housebound pension.
  • For an Aid and Attendance pension, the veteran must need activities of daily living such as dressing or bathing.
  • For the Housebound pension, the veteran must be substantially confined to his or her immediate premises because of a permanent disability.

The state of Wisconsin provides several veteran benefits, which can be availed when eligibility criteria is met. It is easy to get started via their online services tool to determine eligibility of benefits, programs and services. You can even check your application status.

To navigate through this process, feel free to call Assisting Hands of Menomonee Falls at 262-721-1155. We are here to provide you the Quality Home care you deserve, after serving our country selflessly for so many years!

Salute to Your Service and Dedication for our country.

Happy Veterans Day!