Veterans benefits beyond Aid and Attendance — the full landscape

This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical, legal, or financial advice. Every family situation is different, and you should consult with appropriate professionals about your specific circumstances.

If you have a parent who's a veteran, there's a decent chance you've heard about veterans' benefits. But most of what people know is scattered and incomplete. They know "the VA is for healthcare" or they know about the GI Bill for education, but they don't realize that the Veterans Administration has a sprawling set of programs that touch almost every part of an aging veteran's life. Some of these benefits are substantial. Some are modest. All of them might matter to your parent's finances and wellbeing.

The Aid and Attendance benefit we discussed in the previous article is the one that gets the most attention when we're talking about paying for care. But there's much more. There are healthcare benefits that sometimes rival or exceed Medicare. There are pension programs. There are survivor benefits that protect a family after a veteran dies. There are home modification grants that help with accessibility. Understanding the full picture means your parent can access resources that could make a real difference.

The trick is knowing what exists and whether your parent qualifies. The VA doesn't advertise these programs widely. Veterans don't always remember what they're entitled to. Adult children don't know unless they ask specifically. So here's a survey of what's available. Some of these will apply to your parent. Some won't. At least you'll know what's possible.

VA Healthcare: Sometimes Better Than You'd Think

The VA operates its own healthcare system entirely separate from Medicare. If your parent is a veteran, they might be eligible for comprehensive healthcare through the VA. This is not small. It's hospital care, outpatient care, medications, emergency services, mental health treatment, all delivered through the VA system.

Eligibility for VA healthcare is based on military service and sometimes on service-connected disability status. Most veterans qualify for some level of VA healthcare. The coverage isn't perfect, but for many veterans it's better than Medicare. The VA covers medications with low copays. The VA covers preventive care. The VA covers mental health services more comprehensively than Medicare does. If your parent has been seen at a VA facility, they likely have access to this system.

Here's the complication: choosing between VA healthcare, Medicare, or both. If your parent is on Medicare, they can also use VA healthcare. Some veterans use Medicare for specialists outside the VA system and use the VA for primary care. Some reverse that. Some use both equally. The coordination between Medicare and VA can be seamless or confusing depending on how much planning your parent does.

If your parent is not yet on Medicare (they're under 65), they might be getting all their healthcare through the VA, which works fine. Once they turn 65, the Medicare decision comes up and suddenly they're choosing between systems or figuring out how to use both.

The VA won't automatically enroll your parent in Medicare. Your parent needs to sign up for Medicare at 65 even if they're getting all their healthcare through the VA. Some veterans miss their Medicare enrollment period and then face penalties and gaps. This is entirely preventable with a reminder and a quick online or phone application.

Pension Programs: Beyond Retirement Pay

Some veterans receive military retirement pay. That's separate from what we're about to discuss. If your parent is a career military person, they likely have a military retirement pension, which is their own benefit stream.

But the VA also has pension programs for veterans who aren't military retirees. There's a pension for veterans of wartime service who have low income and need financial support. This is different from Aid and Attendance—it's a basic income supplement for veterans who don't have enough to live on.

There's also a Dependent and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) pension for the surviving spouses and children of veterans who died in service or from service-connected causes. This is a monthly payment to the surviving family members.

The pension programs have income and asset limits, similar to Aid and Attendance. If your parent is a veteran with limited income and no service-connected disability, they might qualify for a basic pension even if they don't qualify for Aid and Attendance. The amounts vary but can provide meaningful income for someone living on very little.

These programs require application and medical evidence (for some types). A VA-accredited representative can help determine whether your parent qualifies and guide the application.

Survivor Benefits: Protecting Family After the Veteran Dies

If your parent is a veteran, their status creates benefits for the family after they die. Understanding these means you can make sure the survivor in your family gets what they're entitled to.

The Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) is a monthly benefit paid to the surviving spouse and children of a veteran who died as a result of a service-connected condition. The amount depends on the veteran's rank and the number of surviving dependents. The surviving spouse typically receives the benefit for life unless they remarry, and children receive it until age 23 (or longer if they're in school).

The Surviving Spouse and Dependents Pension is similar but applies to veterans who died from non-service-connected causes. The surviving family members might still qualify for a pension if they have low income.

There are also death benefits. The VA provides a burial flag and covers the cost of a plot in a VA cemetery. Some states provide additional burial benefits for veterans. Understanding what's available means the family doesn't have unexpected funeral costs they weren't planning for.

Education benefits can also pass to surviving spouses and children. If your parent didn't use all of their GI Bill benefits, the family might be able to use those benefits to pay for education. This matters most for younger children, but it's an asset that exists.

These survivor benefits are automatic in some cases and require application in others. After your parent dies, the family should contact the VA and ask what's available. A VA representative can help identify all potential benefits.

Home Adapted Housing Grant: Making the House Accessible

The VA has a program that helps veterans modify their homes for disability. If your parent is disabled due to service-connected injury or illness, they might qualify for a grant that pays for home modifications. This could be a wheelchair ramp, accessible bathroom, door widening, flooring changes, anything that makes the home more accessible for the disability.

The grant isn't unlimited, but it can cover substantial work. If your parent needs modifications that cost $15,000 or $20,000, the VA might cover some or all of that. For a veteran on a limited budget, this can make aging in place possible when otherwise they'd have to move to a facility.

Qualifying requires that the disability be service-connected and that the modifications are reasonable and necessary. The VA has a process for evaluating whether modifications are appropriate. You need to apply through the VA and go through their evaluation.

The application requires information about the veteran's service-connected disability, an assessment of the home and what needs to be modified, and details about the work to be done. An occupational therapist can help assess what modifications would be most helpful.

This program is underutilized. Many veterans don't know it exists. If your parent is disabled and struggling with home accessibility, it's worth investigating.

Coordinating VA Healthcare With Medicare: The Practical Reality

In a perfect world, VA healthcare and Medicare would work together seamlessly. The world is not perfect. But the coordination is usually workable with some intentional planning.

If your parent is on both VA and Medicare, the VA typically has first right to pay for anything they provide. So if your parent sees a VA doctor, the VA charges for that care (usually at low or no copay) and Medicare isn't involved. If your parent sees a non-VA specialist and submits the bill to Medicare, Medicare processes it separately from the VA.

The complication arises when your parent needs to see a specialist that the VA can't provide. Some veterans are entitled to get specialty care from non-VA providers at VA expense if the VA can't provide the service. This requires authorization. If your parent needs a specialist and the VA wait time is too long, or the VA doesn't have that specialty available, the VA might pay for you to go outside the system. But you need to ask and get authorization first.

Medications are usually handled through one system or the other. If your parent gets prescriptions from the VA, they fill them through the VA. If they get prescriptions from a non-VA provider, they might fill them through Medicare Part D or private insurance. You don't want both systems paying for the same medication—it's wasteful and creates confusion.

The practical move is this: decide which system will be primary for your parent. If they're getting most of their care through the VA, keep it there and use Medicare as backup. If they're using private insurance or Medicare for most care, use the VA for specific services. Avoid splitting care 50-50 across systems because nobody tracks what's happening and things fall through the cracks.

The Disability Compensation and Ratings Confusion

You might hear about "service-connected disability rating" and think this is relevant to your parent's case. It can be, but it's not the same as being disabled. The VA rates service-connected disabilities from 0% to 100%. The rating affects several things: the amount of disability compensation your parent receives monthly, eligibility for certain programs, and survivor benefits.

If your parent has a service-connected disability at 50% or above, they qualify for Aid and Attendance even if they're not a wartime veteran. If they don't have a service-connected disability, they need wartime service to qualify for Aid and Attendance.

Understanding your parent's disability rating (if they have one) matters for benefits planning. A rating is documented and doesn't change easily, so knowing what your parent has been rated for is useful. Your parent's VA file contains their rating information.

When a Veteran Dies: What the Family Should Do

In the months after your parent dies, the family has administrative tasks regarding VA benefits. You need to notify the VA of the death. You need to file claims for survivor benefits if the family qualifies. You need to understand what burial benefits are available. You need to check whether there are education benefits that pass to children.

This is an unfortunate list of tasks during grief, which is why understanding it ahead of time helps. You know what forms will need to be filed. You know what to expect. You won't be blindsided by learning about benefits weeks after the death when it's too late to claim them.

Some families hire someone to help with this (an elder law attorney or VA representative). Some work with the VA directly. Either way, having information about what to expect makes the process less overwhelming.

Finding Help With VA Benefits

The Veterans Administration website has information about all of these programs, but it's dense and not user-friendly. A VA-accredited representative,from the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, a legal aid organization, or a private consultant,can help you understand your parent's options and file applications.

Many of these representatives work on a fee-sharing basis for Aid and Attendance and pension claims, meaning they're only paid if you're approved for a benefit. This incentivizes them to help you win the claim, which is good for you.

Some states have additional programs for veterans, which a state veterans' office can explain. Your parent's own experience at a VA facility or working with a VA healthcare provider sometimes leads to information about these programs, which is why maintaining some relationship with the VA system is useful.

The point is: your parent doesn't have to figure this out alone, and you don't have to be an expert. Your parent earned these benefits through military service. Accessing them is reasonable and appropriate. It's just a matter of finding the right information and the right person to help.

How To Help Your Elders is an educational resource. We do not provide medical, legal, or financial advice. The information in this article is general in nature and may not apply to your specific situation. If you are concerned about a loved one's cognitive health or safety, consult with their healthcare provider or contact your local Area Agency on Aging for guidance and support.