Aid and Attendance Benefits for Seniors

For seniors, affordability can be an all-important consideration when it comes to housing, healthcare and medication, as they do their best to balance wants and needs with a fixed income.  Meanwhile, family members who are caring for seniors in their homes may also be struggling with the financial and emotional strains of the caregiver role.

Expenses can mount in the case of a unique group of seniors -- veterans. The National Center for Veterans Analysis reports that veterans often have more complicated health issues and visit doctors and mental health specialists more frequently than non-veterans. 

Georgia is home to more than 774,000 veterans, many of whom are eligible for VA benefits. One that is particularly underutilized is the VA Aid and Attendance program, which provides funds to veterans and their surviving spouses to help care for them as they age. For caregivers who are no longer able to provide the amount and quality of care their loved ones need, the Aid and Attendance benefit helps offset the cost of rent in assisted living communities. And although Aid and Attendance is not a new benefit, many of those who are eligible are unaware of what it can provide. In fact, recent reports indicate that only 41 percent of veterans know about the Aid and Attendance benefit, and even fewer utilize it.

Under Aid and Attendance, veterans can qualify for up to $1,704 monthly and surviving spouses can qualify for $1,094 monthly to assist with rent at an assisted living facility. For a couple (married veteran and spouse), the benefit is $2,020.  There are also benefits available for the spouse of a veteran, even if the veteran is still alive but will not be living in the assisted living facility. For more information, visit http://www.veteranaid.org/apply.php for a step by step guide to applying.

Plantation South Duluth, a senior living residential community, will offer a session on Aid and Attendance called “Breakfast and Benefits” that will offer advice to caregivers and veterans who are considering the Aid and Attendance program. The event is free and open to the public. It will be held on Saturday, June 30, at 9:30 a.m. at 3450 Duluth Park Lane, Duluth, Ga. 30096. Please contact DeAnn Young at 678-534-5075 to RSVP for the event.