A care quote is a price, not a benefit. Before accepting one, test the three gates VA applies to the aid and attendance increase and check whether the family can document each one. A quote that assumes an approval is a planning risk, and the test below shows where the risk sits.[1]

Local option: New Plan Care gives families in the St. Louis area in-home help so a parent can stay home: companionship, help with bathing and dressing, meals, and overnight care. Call (314) 405-0887.

Gate one: wartime service and discharge

The veteran must have served in qualifying wartime service and must have been discharged under conditions other than dishonorable.[2] This gate is a document check, not a judgment call. Read the discharge paper itself and confirm the dates of service and the character of discharge before you commit any money to care.

Gate two: age or disability, and documented need

The veteran must be 65 or older, or permanently and totally disabled, and must need the regular aid of another person.[3] VA's criteria for that need include help with dressing or undressing, keeping clean, feeding, attending to bodily needs, and protection from hazards in daily life.[4] The examining provider records which of these apply. A diagnosis alone does not establish the need; the daily-task record does.

Ask the doctor which daily tasks will be recorded on the form, and whether the answers reflect a typical day at home rather than a good day in the office.

Gate three: income and net worth

The pension is needs-based, so income and net worth limits apply. VA publishes these limits and updates them, so check the current VA page rather than relying on a figure from a forum or an agency brochure.[5] Ask which accounts and income streams count, and whether documented unreimbursed medical expenses can reduce countable income.

Before you accept the quote

  • Does the quote assume the pension pays it, or does it show a private-pay path that runs while the claim is pending?
  • If the claim is approved, what monthly figure is the family expecting, and when would it begin?
  • Who in the family can confirm each gate with a document, not a memory?
  • Has a Veterans Service Officer or accredited representative looked at the file yet?

Passing the three gates means the family may file, not that the claim will be approved. Keep the quote and the pension expectation as two separate lines in the plan, and check the St. Louis offices page for local help with the review.

Notes

  1. VA.gov, Veterans Pension benefits page.
  2. VA.gov, Veterans Pension eligibility requirements for wartime service.
  3. VA.gov, Aid and Attendance benefit eligibility page.
  4. 38 CFR 3.352, criteria for determining the need for regular aid and attendance, as summarized on VA.gov.
  5. VA.gov, Pension income and net worth limits page.

Sources for these notes are listed on the Sources page.