Beers Mallers - Elder law attorneys providing information on legal matters of guardianship and financial issues relating to nursing home care.

Beers Mallers attorneys can also assist with Medicaid requirements and help navigate difficult family situations.

Beers Mallers - Attorneys at law with offices in Fort Wayne, LaGrange and on the web at BeersMallers.com.

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>> Good evening.

I'm Sandy Thomson, host of Life Ahead here on PBS .

Wayne, I'm glad you're with us tonight because I think we've got some information that you might find very timely and very helpful for you if you have a veteran in your family or a neighbor or someone that you know we're going to talking about some very interesting veteran benefits and we have some specialists here that will not only answer my questions to them but we'll answer your questions and you see that number there on the bottom of the screen (969) 27 twenty and that's a number where you can call us right here at PBS and we'll send your questions right on to our experts here.

OK, let's get started by first of all introducing you to our special guest this evening.

You've met Janelle before.

She's an attorney elder law attorney.

Yes, specialist and she's going to be addressing a lot of the legal factors that deal with veteran benefits and the man himself who really knows about that?

Well, he is a veteran plus he's also veteran service officer for Allen County and that is Joe.

>> Is it Watson Lawson?

Yes, ma'am.

OK, all right Joe, thank you for coming to me.

Thank you tonight.

Well, anyway, I want to make sure that you know, you can call us here (969) 27 twenty if you don't live in the two six zero area I just put a one 866- in front of that and it'll come in to hear toll free.

>> It won't cost you anything.

All right, let's get started.

>> First of all, we're talking about V.A.

benefits and I said that you would talk about the legal aspects.

One of the things we want to focus on are VA benefits for long term care.

>> Yes.

Why are we talking about that and is it really that applicable?

It is because as an elder law attorney a lot of times I am talking to clients about coming up with a plan or a strategy for paying for long term care.

And so we look at different sources of benefits to actually help supplement the care costs.

So can you talk about things like long term care insurance through a private company or we'll talk about state benefits such as Medicaid or Paice.

But there's another area out there that sometimes people don't consider and that is a veteran's benefit.

That's a federally funded program that you may be eligible for and there are benefits under that umbrella to help pay for long term care.

So that's why we really want to talk about this because it might be something that a lot of people aren't even aware of and you know better I hear veterans a lot say gee, I didn't know I was eligible for that.

>> I didn't know I could get this and find out some of these things that you can get some long term care benefits is a big deal.

>> Yeah.

Yeah.

All right, Joe, I'm going to ask you to explain to people what a veteran is.

>> I ask you some questions before the show about who's really eligible, who is considered a veteran that might benefit from this program.

That's a great question.

The term veteran is different in different aspects.

So the federal government may have a different different a different definition of veteran where the state has a different definition of veterans.

So kind of all eligibility but our office as a county veterans service officer, if you put on the uniform you're going to be considered a veteran for the benefit of non service connected pension or aid in attendance there is some eligibility requirements of some active duty service, honorable discharge, some of the members are not.

So no, not all the benefits.

No, ma'am.

But but the term a veteran is possibly an honorably discharged individual that served during a period of four days, served honorably.

>> But again that definition can be different for different entities.

I ask you what about reserves if somebody was they were in the Army Reserves or something.

>> Does that count?

Absolutely.

If you were in the National Guard or the Reserves you may be eligible for some benefits.

Every veteran is going to be a little bit different.

Their time in service is going to be different different than mine.

When I was in the service.

We encourage that service member of the family member to contact our office and we can kind of go through some of those eligibility requirements and kind of point them in the right direction.

>> OK, Joe, what is your specific title to share with people?

The title be the director of veterans services for Allen County.

>> OK, director of Veterans Services for Allen County.

Now I think you told me that each county has an officer that can help people.

>> Yes, ma'am.

It is per the governor all 92 counties should have a veteran service officer.

So each county has one of me.

We encourage the service members that they can find one through there through the Department of Veteran Affairs here in Indiana.

>> They can find their all their local veteran service officer would like if somebody wanted to find the person for their county, what do they go online and look for that?

>> How do you find a great question?

I and dot gov and that's right about any yes you can.

Yes, ma'am.

And right on there there's going to be a section where you can search your veteran and county veterans service officer there be a state map and kind of click your county and you'll have some information.

>> But you're serving Allen County.

Yes, ma'am.

So you're probably serving more people than any other county and you have a full time office here in Fort Wayne is that we're at the Edwin Russo Center on the first floor in downtown Fort Wayne .

>> Yes, ma'am.

OK, so people can call you make an appointment or do they need an appointment?

>> Oh, we like to have appointments and we encourage service members to give us a call and so we can find a good time to so they can get on our calendar.

But we also have walk and if anybody can come in during the day and ask questions if a service officer is not available we'll find a time to sit down with them or give them a call at a different time.

>> Well, Janelle paid you a compliment a little while ago.

She said he never turned down anybody.

>> He helps everybody.

He does.

Yeah.

So if you're not from Allen County and you want to have Joe help you find your county officer or answer questions, he is a great resource and I refer people to him all the time.

>> He's just a wealth of knowledge in that area.

OK, you know, as an elder law attorney is it often that you're dealing with clients that are veterans that are searching for some sort of benefit that goes into their estate planning?

>> It usually doesn't.

It's not usually a veteran that comes to me and says what benefits can I have?

Yeah, we ask it on our initial income questionnaire along with what is your name and what is your address and are you married?

We ask are you a veteran because what you mentioned earlier a lot of veterans aren't aware that these benefits are out there.

So we kind of are the first step of informing them that you may be eligible for a benefit.

And I like to say there's a rainbow of veterans benefits.

I really only deal as an elder law attorney with the benefits that would help with long term care.

But if they want more information on that area, I can answer that.

I refer them to Joe very often to see maybe they're eligible for the benefit I know of but they may be eligible for other benefits as well.

So we really work in together to make sure that if we spot a veteran that they are getting the best benefit package that's available.

>> All right.

You said you primarily work with long term care.

>> Are we talking about long term care in terms of benefits for nursing home or retirement center or benefits for home health care?

>> All of the above in fact, when I when I think of long term care benefits, there's really two big avenues.

One is a service connected disability or injury and that's if you were injured in the line of duty through that you would have a disability rating and if you needed long term care you might be based on your disability rating.

>> You might be eligible to stay and get your care costs covered at a nursing facility for a VA facility.

So in this area that would be Bethlehem Woods.

>> So that is one area that you would Bethlehem Woods nursing facility.

So if you have a disability rating then that might be available to you.

But the other area that a lot of people are unaware of is even if you don't have a service connected disability only if you are needing long term care because you're just getting older and because you need help with your activities of daily living.

>> There is something called non service connected pension called aid and attendance and that is available to anyone whether you were injured in the line of duty or not.

There are some requirements but that is something I like to explain and then we go through and we kind of see if that might be something that would help you supplement the cost of that long term care.

>> OK, all right.

And oftentimes with the client you're working closely with joder to verify things, Joe.

>> In addition to as Janelle mentioned, looking for long term care, what other benefits or what other things do you work with clients on through our office we were a lot of different hats and kind when a service member comes to our office we're just going to see how we can assist.

Most often we're going to be filing disability claims for them.

Oh OK.

So if they were injured while on active duty we can assist them and with the claims process and making sure that goes through an accredited service office and so our office is accredited through the American Legion and so our claims go through the American Legion and we kind of help that service member kind of understand the benefits but also be part of the aftercare part.

A claim may take anywhere from four to ten months and we may need to kind of follow up with them to kind of share with them those benefits after they get a rating.

So we kind of want to be there for the aftercare part to do you work with other members of the family?

>> Yes, ma'am.

Yes, ma'am.

So we most often we could be talking to a spouse, maybe a child and really anybody that may be eligible we want to we want to assist we can encourage the spouses to call us too because there could be a benefit for them or sometimes the the service member may need that spouse to kind of ask some of those questions.

>> OK, all right.

Now you mentioned spouses or children or whatever might be eligible and we've talked about that on this show but but not for a while that there could be you could be eligible for something and you don't even know it is that happens sometimes people don't know that they are.

>> Yes, ma'am.

They can find out through a friend or through social media or the news outlets.

And if they do come across some information and there have questions about it all they need to do is call and we can kind of maybe kind of go through that pain funnel.

>> How are they going to find you, Joe?

I know you said I mean your actual office is that the Russo center?

But well, if they want to find your phone number I know we can you can say it now we're at two six zero four seven nine or excuse me two six zero eight four four nine seven eight six .

>> That's right.

I'm getting personal cell phone two zero four four nine seven eight six one is our main line but where can they find it if they didn't hear you just now where can I find it?

>> They go to Allen County dot gov and they can find it right there.

>> OK ok. All right good to know.

OK now I'll see if I can trick Janelle on something to make it even.

>> How does a veteran apply for a pension benefit.

Yes so there's different ways to do it going online of the Veiga there are all of the forms online I mentioned to you before the show sometimes it gets over, it's complicated.

It gets a little overwhelming to gather all the information.

They're all straightforward and you can fill it out yourself if you're so inclined.

But that's usually once we have established and we've talked about with my clients once we've established that this program exists and they might be eligible for it when we're at the point where OK, this is a good plan for you, you are eligible for now we want to apply I usually will have them seek Joe to help them act as Joe will act as a liaison to gather all the information and to get those forms completed and to submit them and then you know, it takes a while sometimes it can take anywhere in my experience six months to a year for this process to go from beginning to end where you're actually receiving the check the monthly benefit check .

And so Joe's office is great in following up and seeing what the status is and trying to maybe motivate and push the VA a little bit and getting a response.

>> And so it's really helpful to have someone on your side kind of rather than just doing it online by yourself.

>> Not sure you even did it right.

We have a phone call.

>> This is from Peter and Peter said What is the time frame for processing an application?

Let's talk about that.

Yeah yeah.

Oh yeah.

It comes down to you, Joe and you can talk oh yeah.

To Peter I think with an application that could be anywhere from four to ten months I think the the first thing that we need to do is have that service members sit down with a service officer or whoever is going to be filing that claim and gather that necessary information and get that submitted again.

Every veteran going to be different if that service member's already service connected we may see that claim come back a little bit sooner rather than if it's their first initial claim.

>> OK, anything to add to that, you know?

Oh, I was just thinking sometimes that things that slow it down from what I've experienced there's certain documentation that's needed now a lot of veterans have to 14 that's a paper that shows when they were admitted into the service and when they were discharged and whether it was honorably discharged or whatnot ,they have that or is that something they have to a lot of times people have it but if it's a child that's helping an elderly parent through it, sometimes they may not know where it is or they can't obtain it.

So sometimes we have to order something like that.

>> So just smaller things like that can kind of delay the process and that adds to that for the three month time frame as well.

So it's really how quickly can we when we're going to try to get you done as quick as possible.

But it sounds like even though it's going to take a little bit of time less time if you get some help with that it's worth it because you're going to get a benefit.

>> You didn't get the bar right.

And it's also we need to know that when a service member they can actually establish an effective date and so they can file a claim to kind of get their foot in line and so they may not be able to file the claim for a couple of months.

But when they filed a claim when it gets adjudicated they may get back paid to the day that they actually filed the intent to file.

>> All right.

You've lost her.

>> I did.

But when we when we filed these claims it could take ten four to six four to ten months, OK?

There could be a process where even though it takes this long the veteran can be compensated monetarily back to the date that they filed so it could take long but at the end result he may receive or she may receive some of those benefits.

>> OK, so there's a form Sandy , just to kind of give you the second set of ears on how there's a form that you can file that says hey, I have intention to file for this benefit.

>> I see.

So you file this one form and then it kind of puts a line in the sand and gets to like this don't gives you up to a year to gather all the rest of the information and to file that form.

>> So if you're lying the sand is here and it takes you another six months to gather your payment once you are eligible will retroactive back to that initial form.

>> So that kind of sets you up for further because some people I'm assuming don't do that form.

>> Is that right, Joe?

So they can send me the back pay?

Yes, ma'am.

Yes.

And so we just encourage them when they do make that phone call to our office we're going to kind of let it all out there to kind of give them all those options to be there for them.

>> OK, don't forget you can call us here at (969) 27 twenty and Joe and Janelle will answer your questions.

OK, let's talk about the receiving your pension after you've applied.

>> Does it take a long time or no.

>> I mean actual get actually get money for that pension once once they've adjudicated you to do it to use Joe's word and found you eligible then you get you start getting monthly payments right then and you may get a lump sum back payment if you've done that in that letter and it's a couple of months but I mean typically you get a monthly let's say a check but usually it's direct deposited into the veteran's bank account or if you're a surviving spouse you are also eligible if you can rely on your deceased spouse service record if you're eligible then then the surviving spouse could could have a job getting in if that person the veteran is is in a long term care facility or something, does the payment go directly to them or to their home and then they pay for it.

>> You put on the application itself where you want the funds to go.

But if you have in a situation of a veteran who maybe no longer have capacity then the VA will require a fiduciary to act on that veteran's behalf.

So in that instance and they would set up a separate account that's just for the benefit of the veteran and we could have the the payments directed there.

>> OK, can you use the benefit then just to go over this again because I think a lot of people would be interested can you use your benefit for services in your home?

>> Say you want hire a home health care to come into your home for medications or cooking or cleaning or something that can come in?

>> I'll cover that or in the facility.

>> Absolutely.

So if we're talking about that aid and attendance benefit that I talked about earlier that one is exactly now we have a lot of clients who are opting or choosing to age in place to stay in their agent place.

>> I love that term and we use that a lot on this show because that seems to be the way of now and the future absolutely to age in place and this is actually that's one of those areas where this type of benefit, this aid and I tend to benefit works very, very well because it helps fill a gap that you may have in being able to afford to have someone come into your home.

>> So absolutely yes, your attendance benefits can be utilized to hire nurses or care caregivers to come into your home but it can also be used to help to cover the gap in assisted living facility or in a nursing home so you can use them at any of those three categories.

>> Now I know that there are a number of organizations or businesses in not only in Allen County but in all of northern Indiana that provide home health care and you can sign up for and pay for the person to come in and help with these things.

>> So would you be with the benefit go to that person or do they come to you and a the home health care?

>> Yeah, that's a great question.

The money actually comes to you.

You can choose what home health care you would like to use so they don't have to be in a Medicaid situation for example.

It has to be a facility that will accept Medicaid.

This is not that situation because the payment isn't going to directly to the facility or to the home health care it is coming to you and you can choose to use it whichever home health care you prefer.

>> OK, all right.

We have another question here this one is from Sam.

>> Hold on just a second here and I'll get to that.

I know we're talking about well your specialty Joe obviously is Allen County but you know what happens in the other counties and all the different officers would be doing a similar thing than you do.

But here's what we are curious about.

Sam wants to know are there any differences between Indiana and Ohio for a claim?

>> Do you know if it is a standard filing for a disability claim?

It doesn't matter if you're hoot if you're Indiana resident or Ohio resident, we're still fighting to be the same all over the United States because it is a federal program brand ma'am.

OK, all right Sam, thank you.

That was a good question and I appreciate you watching by the way, as well here.

What what happens if a claim is denied?

Let's go to you for that.

>> What would be some reasons that it might be denied?

I don't want to be negative but we have to look at that as a possibility.

>> They may not be eligible.

They may have too much assets.

They may be over the limit for assets.

Oh, OK.

So there is a lot of things that they could be denied for but there is an appeal process and so our office can also assist with kind gathering the evidence and kind of understanding why they're denied and kind of happened sharing with them what information is needed.

OK, usually when a service member is denied for benefits they kind are told the answers in the test right there in the notification.

So we kind of use that notification letter to kind of understand why they're denied and then we can appeal that process.

>> OK, so it doesn't mean that it's forever I mean a little more work on your part.

Yes.

To appeal again we've talked a little bit about Medicaid.

>> Janelle, what's the difference here?

Can a person get both Medicaid and these VA benefits you can actually be eligible for and be receiving both types of benefits?

There are some nuances between the two different programs for example the aid and attendance to be to meet the health care requirement you need to have assistance with two of your activities of daily living.

You need you know, we need to have help.

You need to need to have help with those two things if that makes sense.

So but with Medicaid they actually require three and in most instances we see that someone might be eligible for their health care for the VA benefits earlier than they might be eligible health care wise for the Medicaid benefits.

OK, another big difference between the two programs and Joe alluded to this is the asset requirement of VA is much more liberal.

You can have a lot more assets and be eligible for aid and attendance.

You can have up to one hundred and fifty nine .

I wrote it down because the numbers just changed.

You can have up to one hundred and fifty nine thousand two hundred and forty dollars of assets and still be eligible for VA benefits.

>> That's good.

>> That's promising yes because for Medicaid you have to have two thousand dollars a year so there's a big, big difference there.

>> And then as far as the the benefit is considered VA Capps what your monthly rate can be and I want to create those numbers so everyone can hear so this is this is the last minute numbers here.

>> Yes, exactly.

They change annually.

So these are the twenty twenty five numbers.

So if you apply for aid and attendance and you are a single veteran, the maximum amount that you would receive monthly that you could receive is two thousand three hundred and fifty eight dollars a month which is good.

That's great.

If you're a veteran who's married you can get a little more and that's two thousand seven hundred ninety five dollars a month or if you're a surviving spouse so your your veteran your spouse is is deceased you can still get one thousand five hundred fifteen dollars now.

>> That's right.

And that helps clear that gap if you're needing a little extra income that's definitely worth going through.

I would say so yes.

But there is a situation if you're in a nursing home where your income combined with the VA benefit may still not be enough because a monthly charge of a nursing home can be quite high a lot.

So that's when we start thinking about Medicaid that because Medicaid will cover the gap between your income and whatever the care cost is.

>> So that could be significant could be significantly more it can be five thousand eight thousand dollars to Medicaid.

They'll pay whatever that is whereas the VA benefit is structured a little bit differently and that it's just a max monthly amount that they will pay you.

>> So there's some pros and cons both ways but yes, you could be receiving both at the same time that is as pretty much any any program it gets very complicated and all the better reason that you do get some sort of professional help in sorting it all out.

>> Joe, I've got one more question for you.

We're nearly out of time, but I want to know what the military family relief fund is and who's eligible.

>> So the Military Family Relief Fund is brought on by the Indiana Department of Veteran Affairs and it's a grant program for service members that are in need.

Every veteran that you see with a license plate out there, those veterans actually put money into this program so veterans are helping veterans.

OK, I think last year I do have some numbers.

I get that right.

But last year there was about two thousand one hundred forty applications and a in Indiana there are seven hundred and ninety two that were approved and the state of Indiana provide about nine hundred and twenty five thousand dollars of grants to service members that were in need.

Anything from car repair.

So it's a great program.

Again our office can kind of point service members there.

There are some eligibility but it's it's an amazing program for service so it doesn't have anything to do in terms of long term care that we're not going to manage.

>> It could be like you said, car repair anything.

This is a great program that we have in our state.

>> I think it's really neat.

That's amazing.

Over nine hundred thousand has been paid out in U.S.A. for this year.

Yes, ma'am.

Hey, somebody needs to apply for these things yet you didn't even know were possible for you.

I want to thank not only Janelle Sprinkel for coming and talking to us, giving us the legal aspects but Joe once and for your expertize and all that you do and I know I was talking to Joe earlier you've been doing this since twenty eight a.m. so you've helped a lot of people.

>> Well I hope that this information has helped you that we provide here on LIFE Ahead and we'll be back right here next Wednesday night at seven thirty with another topic.

>> Meanwhile be sure and watch us here not only on PBS but you can catch us also on YouTube.

We'll see you next week By the year 2030, one in five Americans will be of retirement age.

Beers Mallers - elder law attorneys counsel individuals regarding matters of setting up estates, trusts and help navigate difficult family situations.

Beers Mallers, attorneys at law with offices in Fort Wayne, LaGrange, and on the web at BeersMallers.com.