Do you know anybody who is going into or in an assisted living facility?

[Willybeen]

Are they a veteran? or a widow of a veteran? (They dont need to be in an assisted living facility to get the benefit, but Its easier to qualify if they are and to be honest, if they are facing the costs of an ALF, they could probably use the assistance, Besides, it is OWED to them) If so, I might be able to get them an additional income that can go toward the cost of care or whatever else they wish to spend it on.

Its tax free and from the government, it ranges from around $11,700-$24,000 depending on a number of factors.

I havent been around lately but a bunch of people on here can vouch for me being a stand-up guy. Long story short, I moved to Florida, started a new job, and was introduced to this benefit from one of my clients down here.

I figured I'd pass on the word to my friends in WNY.

If you want to know how to qualify, I'd be more than happy to point you in the right direction.

For those of you who don't know me, My name is William. I can be reached at william@epa.nfp.com

Hopefully I'll be able to help some people out. Feel free to tell your friends, if they don't have email, you can reach me at my office during the day @ 772-567-7970 x104.

I'll answer generic questions here as they come up.... so feel free to ask away

(I feel like I aged 30 years since I moved south, I'm typing this as I fall asleep and get ready for bed at 9pm... When I was in Buffalo, I was never in bed before midnight. Geez......)

[FMD]

Families should take care of their own, assisted living facilities and nursing homes are a rip off, and often times, once a loved one goes in, they never come out and the family forgets about them.

[Frank Broughton]

Families should take care of their own, assisted living facilities and nursing homes are a rip off, and often times, once a loved one goes in, they never come out and the family forgets about them.

I agree, I agree that some are, I agree that many do this! On the last point I have seen it with my own eyes. I took my family into a nursing home for over 10 straight years - reading poems, singing songs and just plan old holding hands. My grown children learned much from this experience. It was a rare day to see any family members there. I did see some though so not all are like that.

[Willybeen]

Not all assisted living facilities are like this. I'm not talking about skilled nursing facilities, rather assisted living... where the residents are just that and they can come and go as they please, often times still driving their own cars.

This benefit I speak of is not only for Assisted Living Facility residents, I just figured it'd be most beneficial to those veterans or families of veterans who have high medical costs... ie, Drugs, assisted living costs, etc etc...... Families can still provide the care and have the government reimburse them for the care.

I've done a lot with this particular benefit, and I'm just trying to help bring the knowledge to the public's attention. (not to start a debate over if families should step up to the plate or if people should be held accountable for getting old and not planning... etc etc......)


Bottom line... Theres money available to the veterans of our country and their widows to the tune of about 22 BILLION DOLLARS a year.. and it is not being tapped into... Approximately 1 in 7 veteran widows who are eligible for the pension actually receive monthly checks.... its mind boggling.

[buffy]

I wonder if my father in law has this benefit. He's an Army Vet who recently sold his house and moved into Freedom Village, an independent living facility outside Philadelphia. They love not having to take care of the lawn and house. They come and go as they please from their condo. The Village has several levels of assistance. they pretty much just get an evening phone call to see how they are at this point.

[Ms.Depew.to.you]

Buffy, you should look into it. We found out my grandmother was eligible since my grandfather was a WWII vet.

We love having my grandmother is assisted living. Our primary concerns with her were forgetting the stove burner was on and her falling. She's in no way ready for a full fledged nursing home. Assisted living was the perfect answer. She and her friends there (we were shocked how many people she knew there once she moved in!) come and go and are having a merry old time. She's happier than when she was living on her own, and the family has the peace of mind knowing someone's there 24/7 should she need help if she falls.

[buffy]

http://www1.va.gov/opa/pressrel/docs...attendance.doc

[Willybeen]

As for people who dont think they qualify... I've become so familiar with the process now, I can help walk you through it and let you know of any additional steps that may need to be taken in order to qualify... its not very difficult for most people to qualify once they are in an ALF.... however if you do it wrong the first time, you can create a look back period which could send you into appeals (which is backlogged 2-3 years)

DO IT RIGHT THE FIRST TIME, if you havent done it before, feel free to shoot me an email or a call.... (I've helped qualify millionaires for the benefit, so dont throw the towel in before you understand things completely)

PS. thanks buffy for the link

PSS. those numbers in that email are dated.... its now $12,681 for a widow and 23,396 for a veteran and a dependent ... per year... tax free... and it goes up every December 1st !!!!!

[CAugust]

Families should take care of their own, assisted living facilities and nursing homes are a rip off, and often times, once a loved one goes in, they never come out and the family forgets about them.

Assisted facilities are not nursing homes at all ..

however sometimes you have no other choice but a nursing home - even if you dont want that option .... no one understands it unless you have to live it ......