As you plan for your loved one’s future, it is important that you consider all the benefits and programs he or she may qualify for in Florida. This is especially true if your loved one is a veteran. There are many benefits offered by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs that could help your loved one financially as he or she ages. Making sure to check into each benefit and seeing if your loved one qualifies will help ensure he or she does not miss out on an entitled benefit.
One program to check into is the Veteran’s pension, which the VA explains is a program offering monthly payments. Like any VA program, there are requirements your loved one must meet to be eligible to receive this benefit.
To begin with, he or she must be a wartime Veteran. This means that he or she served when the country was at war. More specifically, the requirement is that he or she must have been an officer on active duty after October 16, 1981, who did not serve active duty before for at least 24 months or was on active duty after September 7, 1980 and served a full period or at least 24 months with one day during wartime or was on active duty before September 8, 1980, and had at least one day of wartime while serving at least 90 days on active duty.
In addition to the service requirement, your loved one must also be either 65 years old or older or a patient in a nursing home for a long-term disability, receiving Social Security Disability or Supplemental Security Income or have a permanent total disability.
Lastly, your loved one has to meet income limits, including assets and cannot have a dishonorable discharge. If he or she meets these requirements, then you should look into getting the pension benefits. This information is for education and is not legal advice.
