Long Term Care for Veterans - By Chris Cushman
The VA has a pension for veterans that helps them and their spouses receive long-term care benefits. The benefits (referred to as Aid & Attendance) and its qualifiers recently changed. Here are a few of the changes: 1. There is a new asset limit of $123,000. This benefit has long been focused on veterans who have spent down their resources. This new limit includes annual income (add up assets plus income) but you can exclude your primary residence, some other personal property, and even medical expenses. 2. There is now a 36-month lookback period for assets that have been transferred. The VA didn’t want someone easily qualifying by giving all their money away to friends or family. There are still ways to plan in advance for this benefit, but now it’s more prudent to start planning earlier! There have been other changes, but these are the most notable. Not all veterans are even aware of this program so spread the word. If you have family that could use some planning in this area then give us a call and we’d be happy to help!