Learn How an Aid and Attendance Benefit Application Can Help You or a Loved One

If you or a spouse have served in the military, you may be eligible to submit an Aid and Attendance Benefit Application that can help offset the cost of care for an assisted living. The basic requirements to be eligible to submit an Aid and Attendance Benefit Application are being aged 65 or older, being a wartime veteran, and not currently receiving 100% VA disability income.

How an Aid and Attendance Benefit Application Can Help:

To be considered a wartime veteran for an Aid and Attendance Benefit Application, you must have served during specific timeframes.  They are as follows:  World War II (December 7, 1941-December 31, 1956), Korean Conflict (June 27, 1950-January 31, 1955), Vietnam era (February 28, 1961-May 7, 1975, although there are exceptions), and The Gulf War (August 2,1990-present).

Additionally, there are different amounts of benefits available for an Aid and Attendance Benefit Application depending on your situation.  The maximum monthly benefits are as follows: Two married veterans can receive $3,649, a surviving spouse of a veteran can receive $1,478, a veteran with no spouse or dependent children can receive $2,300, a married couple where the veteran requires care can receive $2,727, a healthy veteran with a spouse who requires care can receive $1,750.

These benefits received as the result of having an Aid and Attendance Benefit Application approved can prove invaluable, especially for a veteran or their surviving spouse that needs assisted living care.  Not every assisted living is contracted with Medicaid, but the ones that are generally get $1,400-$1,600 of the monthly bill covered by Medicare.

  

In 2024, the average monthly cost for an assisted living facility in Florida is $3,994. This means that if a veteran or their surviving spouse has been approved for Medicaid benefits and for an Aid and Attendance benefit Application, they can have the majority of their bill paid every month for the assisted living facility.

This is a game changer, as many veterans or their surviving spouses live on limited fixed incomes that may not be enough to cover their cost of care otherwise.  Everyone, especially veterans and their spouses deserve to be cared for as they age without going broke.  By combining an Aid and Attendance Benefit Application with Medicaid benefits, this can be achieved!

Final Word:

Platinum Benefit Services has been obtaining Medicaid approvals for our clients for over 27 years.  In that time, we have won over 14,000 approvals.  We work closely with a VA accredited professional who will help you apply for an Aid and Attendance Benefit Application while we work to secure Medicaid benefits on you or a loved one’s behalf.  We take what we do very seriously and will not stop until you or a loved one receives the care you or they need.  If you would like to pursue Medicaid eligibility and submit an Aid and Attendance Benefit application to obtain VA benefits, contact Platinum today!

Things to Consider When Filing a Medicaid Application for the Elderly

There are many factors that determine whether a Medicaid Application for the Elderly is successful.  The Department of Children and Families is the organization that reviews and either approves or denies Medicaid Applications for the Elderly.

Factors to Consider When Filing a Medicaid Application for the Elderly:

The Department of Children and families (DCF) has income and countable asset limits for applicants.  In 2024, the income limit is $2,829, and the countable asset limit is $2,000 for an individual applicant, $3,000 for a married couple that are both applying, and $2,000 for the applicant and $154,140 for the non-applicant spouse if married.  For many individuals seeking to file a Medicaid Application for the Elderly, this is already enough to cause confusion.

The rules do not stop there. DCF looks at the 5 years (60 months) prior to application to see if any gifting has occurred. DCF looks at money given away, assets sold for less than fair Market Value (FMV), etc. DCF is concerned that a potential applicant will try to dispose of money in order to get below the countable asset limit.  If DCF determines that gifting has occurred, a potential penalty period may ensue that pushes back the date that benefits begin after a Medicaid Application for the Elderly is filed. 

The penalty divisor in 2024 is $10,300.  This is the amount that DCF figures an average skilled nursing facility will cost per month.  If the total gifting over the 5 years prior to application is equal to or greater than $10,300 an ineligibility period occurs.  The formula for calculating this ineligibility period is

(aggregate gifting/$10,300=months of ineligibility). There are no partial months of ineligibility, so it is always rounded down.  This can certainly cause problems in regard to a Medicaid Application, because situations do happen where the gifting is enough to cause at least a month of ineligibility.

Fortunately, steps can be taken to correct the gifting so that it does not cause an issue for a Medicaid Application for the Elderly.  Beyond the basic approach of returning the gifted amount, the other strategies to correct gifting are not widely known, so it is advisable to speak to an expert when trying to correct gifting so that it does not interfere with a Medicaid Application for the Elderly.

When an individual or couple that wishes to submit a Medicaid Application for the Elderly is over the countable asset limit, there are many protection strategies that can be used to convert the assets from the countable category to the non-countable/exempt category for qualification purposes.

Steps can also be taken to restructure income so that it meets the qualification criteria for a Medicaid Application for the Elderly.

Over to You:

Platinum Benefit Services has been obtaining Medicaid Application for the Elderly approvals for over 27 years and has obtained over 14,000 approvals.  Over that time, we have gained unmatched expertise in the field which translates to unmatched results for you or a loved one.  If you want to know you are in the best hands, contact us today!