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MAIL CALL! YOU'VE GOT QUESTIONS, JIM STRICKLAND
HAS
ANSWERS -- Veterans' Advocate Jim Strickland
answers questions from VA Watchdog readers.
Veterans' Advocate Jim Strickland provides
regular columns for VA Watchdog dot Org.
If you would like to contact Jim about his
columns, you can email him here...
The archive of Jim's articles
is here...
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I've been very fortunate that in the last 5 or 6 years I've used a
civilian ER twice and it's been paid promptly. A friend is still trying
to get his paid a year later and it only stopped after I got sneaky and
called the biller and made up a tall tale of writing a story about how
slow VA pays. They were happy to speak with me and gave me way more
confidential information about a particular Veteran than they should
have. I turned the table and began to ask them how many other of
America's heroes were they threatening will legal action, late night
phone calls, abusive language and such? I then pointed out their
violations of privacy rules for telling me such and such and by then I
had everything but their children's names. It was pretty funny and he
hasn't heard a word since. (Not too long after this event the VA paid
his bill. The person harassing him was a Vet herself and apologized. She
was “just doing her job”.) (July 07 follow-up; We heard the harassing
employee was terminated. VA apparently inquired into the manner a Vet
had been treated and the investigation seems to have uncovered other
events.)
A Reader's Question:
I'm not sure if you can help me with this problem, but I thought it
worth a shot. My Dad applied for the Aid and Attendance Program and was
accepted after the usual 6 months of waiting. We had to pay 50% to his
caregivers until the program went into effect and was then re-imbursed.
Once we found out the exact amount that our dad was getting, the
home-care business upped his hours to insure they got all of his check.
We agreed with this because dad needs almost constant care. He lives in
a Senior Housing controlled by HUD. That is where we are now running
into a problem. HUD says that they have to consider this pension as
income and want to raise his rent, or he may be asked to move because
his income is now too high. He doesn't get any of the pension for
himself. It is all turned around and paid back out for his care, so how
can this be considered income? My Dad wants to be able to spend his last
days in the home he has lived in for the last few years. He's been in
two different nursing homes with negative effects because he just wants
to be home. We want that for him also but are not able to help him
financially. Do you know of anything that we can do as far as
approaching Hud with this issue? We have a meeting scheduled with them
in a couple of weeks to re-evaluate his rent. Thanks for any help you
can provide me.
My Answer:
This is outside my expertise. I'm going to put you in direct contact,
via this email, with an expert consultant who manages a home for seniors
and helps many Veterans. My friend has proven to be an invaluable
resource in assisting others as they grapple with the A & A benefit.
The Consultant's Reply To The Reader:
Under the HUD program (or ANY assistance program), any money that your
Dad receives is considered "Income"....whether it be a Social Security
check, a Retirement check, a VA Pension check, or a VA Disability check.
This is ALL money in the bank. This should have been understood as you
were filling out the application for the Aid and Attendance. You had to
figure out if this additional VA Pension income would interfere with any
other benefit programs that your Dad may have qualified for and decide
which one is the best.
If your Dad's income is above a certain amount, he will not qualify for
HUD, Medicaid, or anything else. (This Aid and Attendance Pension is
obviously raising his income.....no matter what he is spending the money
for.) If he draws a Social Security Check and is under Medicare, the
Social Security check was considered "Income", and the Medicare payment
deducted from that check was considered "Medical Expense" under this Aid
and Attendance.
This VA Pension is to help Veterans with their "Medical" expenses. It is
not for housing, utilities, food, or anything else. Your Dad should
qualify for free medicine and free medical care from the VA, and he
should qualify for a VA Nursing Home.
Because HUD is based on income and is totally separate from the VA
program, you should have talked with them (HUD) to see if this pension
would interfere with your Dad's housing situation. That would have been
your first priority when considering this Aid and Attendance Pension.
I am very sorry that your Dad won't qualify for HUD now. You will need
to decide which program will benefit your Dad the best....HUD or Aid and
Attendance.....or Medicaid. With this VA Pension and his Social
Security, perhaps he could pay for Assisted Living. You might want to
check this option out. OR....you will need to discontinue the Aid and
Attendance Pension and continue with HUD.
If your Dad qualifies for Medicaid, it might be possible to get an Aide
to come to his home for a few hours each day (free). You might
investigate to find out what Medicaid will provide. (If he qualifies for
HUD, surely he must qualify for Medicaid).
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Larry Scott --
