Veterans’ Homecare Benefits©

True confession: I’m not a veteran, but sometimes I wish I were, especially when it comes to homecare benefits! More detail in a minute, but first…

When I graduated college in 1967, the economy was booming, and so was the Vietnam War. I had done several interviews in the spring of my senior year and gotten several job offers, but two stood out. First was the one I really wanted: a job offer from Chrysler to pursue a master’s degree in Automotive Engineering at the Chrysler Institute in Detroit. The second was a backup plan, an offer from the USAF for pilot training.

I took the Chrysler offer because that was my passion at the time, but over the years, I’ve often wondered what life would be like today if I’d gone into the Air Force. Mind you, I have no regrets because of the incredible young woman I met shortly after moving to Detroit who would come to be my wife and now the grandmother of nine. No regrets! Just occasional curiosity.

But what I do dwell on, especially here in Middle Georgia, is appreciation for all the Veterans who have served our country in our armed forces. These days, with the world seeming like a powder keg ready to explode, our armed forces are more important than ever.

One of the ways our country expresses its thanks to our veterans is through a menu of benefits, one of which is Home Care when it’s needed by disabled or senior vets.

Actually, there are two Home Care benefit programs for vets, each with its own “Good News/Bad News” elements.

The first is called “Aid and Attendance Pension.”

For this benefit, the good news is that it applies to both veterans and their spouses; the bad news is that there is a rather difficult financial threshold to meet before either the Vet or the spouse can begin receiving those benefits.

The second is called “Community Care Network Home Health Aid benefit.”

For this benefit, the bad news is that it only applies to vets; it does not cover spouses. But the good news is that it is much easier to qualify for. It does not have a financial qualifier requirement. What is required for this benefit is an evaluation and determination by a VA physician that In-Home Care is required.

It has been our experience at Visiting Angels ® that neither of these benefits is widely understood, even in our veteran-rich community of Middle Georgia. I suppose that part of the reason is explained by the fact that applying for these benefits can be an onerous task. At least, that was our experience when we first began to service our community of vets.

But over the years, we have streamlined this process for our clients such that we’ve been able to help hundreds of vets receive the Home Care benefits that they’re entitled to, and that has made for some very smiley veteran faces!

As we like to say here, in Houston County at least, EDIMGIAFAD (Every Day In Middle Georgia Is Armed Forces Appreciation Day.) And one of the ways we tangibly express that is by helping our vets access the home care they have earned through their service to our country.

Please contact Visiting Angels ® if you have questions about home care benefits for your Vet.

Thanks for reading All About Seniors… see you next week!

Bill Milby is a Director of Visiting Angels® of Central Georgia, a non-medical, living assistance service for seniors. If you have questions or comments about this column, you can reach him at william.mercylink@gmail.com or search for us at https://www.facebook.com/VisitingAngelsofCentralGA.

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