Denton County Living Well Magazine March/April 2016 | Page 12

Veterans Aid
and
Attendance Pension
What is Veterans Aid and Attendance Pension?
The Veterans Aid and Attendance
(A&A) Pension provides benefits that
reduce the cost of care for veterans
and surviving spouses who require assisted living.
The Aid and Attendance (A&A) Pension provides benefits for veterans and
surviving spouses who require the regular attendance of another person to
assist in eating, bathing, dressing and
undressing or taking care of the needs
of nature. It also includes individuals
who are blind or a patient in a nursing
home because of mental or physical
incapacity. Assisted care in an assisting living facility also qualifies.
The A&A Pension can provide up
to $1,788 per month to a veteran,
$1,149 per month to a surviving
spouse, or $2,120 per month to a cou-

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ple. A veteran filing with a sick spouse
is eligible for up to $1,406 per month.
Many families overlook the A&A Pension as it pertains to veterans who
are still independent, but have an ill
spouse. Keep in mind that in this situation, if the spouse’s medical expenses
completely deplete their combined
monthly income, the veteran can file
as a veteran with a sick spouse.
Who started VeteranAid.org?
Debbie Burak is the founder of VeteranAid.org. She is often asked why she
took on the mission to educate our veterans and their families about a little
known VA pension benefit referred to
as “Aid and Attendance” that can help
offset the costs of care for senior veterans and their widows.
She says, “The answer is a simple one–
–I know what it is to be that daughter
out of hope, options, resources, and

DENTON COUNTY Living Well Magazine | MARCH/APRIL 2016

money to provide care for aging parents.”
Debbie discovered the VA Pension at
the passing of her father, at the same
time needing to move her mother to
another assisted living facility. She
also realized that her folks had missed
out on over $160,000 by not knowing about the VA pension her Dad as
a WWII veteran would have been entitled to.
Debbie knew that she had information that could make a difference for
others who were just now setting out
on this journey of caring for an aging
loved one, and so VeteranAid.org, a
501 (c) (3) non-profit, was founded
in 2005 to bring to light the VA’s Aid
and Attendance Pension Benefit.
Debbie Burak is respected throughout
the eldercare industry for her tireless