What Are Eligibility Requirements For VA Non-Service Connected Pension With Aid And Attendance?
Eligibility for VA non-service connected pension with aid and attendance has four requirements. The first requirement is the military service requirement. A veteran must have 90 days of active duty during a wartime period. The wartime periods are defined in the VA benefits handbook. The handbook is available online. The wartime periods include all World War II veterans, Korean War veterans, and veterans of the Gulf conflict starting in 1990 with an open date. For veterans of the Vietnam War, the VA requires a period of duration in the country during the first part of the war. After the period of duration, the veteran is not required to be in country during the Vietnam War.
If the veteran is deceased, the surviving spouse of the veteran can apply for a VA improved pension or a death pension. To qualify as a surviving spouse, the widow or widower cannot be remarried. Similarly, A divorced spouse of a deceased veteran cannot claim benefits.
The second qualification rule is the medical requirement. Instead of having a percentage of disability like the service-connected pension, which states 10%, 40% or 100% disability, the improved pension has three tiers of medical need. The first tier requires that the veteran is over the age of 65 with no other discernible medical issues. The second tier is a homebound veteran, which can be defined as a veteran who can carry on with activities of daily living, but is restricted in their mobility or ability to travel outside the home. The third eligibility, and highest medical tier of eligibility, is the aid and attendance tier. The aid and attendance tier means that the veteran or the applicant for the VA improved pension benefit requires assistance with two or more activities of daily living.
The third requirement for a VA improved pension with aid and attendance is the income test. The income test requires that the applicant’s non-reimbursed gross medical expenses exceed their gross annual income by 5%. For instance, if your gross annual income is $1,000 a month ($12,000 for the year), you must have more than $1,050 of medical expenses per month to receive the full VA benefit without a reduction of that benefit. The unreimbursed medical expenses portion of this test notably includes the cost of living in a licensed assisted living facility or private in-home caregivers. The caregivers can be provided through an in-home care company, caregivers who are hired directly, or family caregivers. Family caregivers cannot be a paid spouse giving care to his or her spouse.
Unreimbursed medical expenses can include copays, deductibles, equipment, and so forth. Reoccurring unreimbursed medical expenses is the preference, but not the rule. The exercise of discovering and developing that information for ongoing eligibility is paperwork intensive and stressful.
The fourth and final requirement for VA eligibility is the assets and resources test. The asset and resource tests for VA eligibility look at the applicant’s combined annual gross income at the time of application plus the countable assets, including investments and bank accounts, but not a primary residence. The limit increases each year, and it is currently at approximately $128,000. For example, if your annual income is $20,000, and you have $100,000 in a checking and savings bank account, then you meet the test.
The applicant must meet all four requirements in order to get the VA improved pension with aid and attendance.
For more information on Eligibility For VA Non-Service Connected Pension With Aid And Attendance an initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you’re seeking by calling (904) 398-6100 today.
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