Did you know that the surviving spouse did not have to be married to the veteran at the time the veteran served?
However, they had to be married to the veteran at the veteran’s passing. IF they remarried, it may affect their ability to apply.
If a surviving spouse was married to more than one veteran, we will apply on the last veteran’s service record.
Special documents needed for this type of application (copies are acceptable):
- Death certificate with cause of death listed
- Marriage certificate or proof of the marriage
The pension for the surviving spouse is currently $1,244.00/month tax-free.
Income, for Veterans Administration purposes, is Social Security (SSI and SSD) and retirement pension. (Note: IRAs and investments, including checking and savings, are considered assets for calculation purposes and do not need to be counted here)
In order to receive the entire pension award, the applicant must be spending their income on unreimbursed medical expenses. (On the initial application this does not include co-pays or prescriptions)
The rent in assisted living or independent living with on-site caregivers qualifies to reduce the income to zero.
Please note that when a client still resides at home, their entire income may only go toward unreimbursed medical expenses (this does not include rent or mortgage, utilities, or food) to receive the entire pension. It is possible to receive a portion of the pension and, as care increases, request the pension award be increased as well.
Life Expectancy Reaches Record High. Preliminary Data for 2007 states the average American lives to nearly age 78 years (77.9), up from 77.7 in 2006. Over the past decade, life expectancy has lengthened 76.5 years in 1997 to 77.9 in 2007- an increase of 1.4 years.
Caregivers of people with dementia are very likely to experience strain. It is suggested that 40 to 75% of caregivers have significant psychological illness as a result of their care giving, and 15 to 32 percent have clinically diagnosed major depression.
An estimated 35.6 million people will be living with dementia in 2010, representing a 10% increase over previous global dementia studied in 2005. ADI estimates that the number will nearly double every 27 years, to 65.7 million in 2030 and 115.4 million in 2050.
40% of people with claims on their long term care policy are between the ages of 18 and 65!
