EBooks
2022 PACT Act: Understanding Health Care Eligibility and Benefits
The Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act – or Honoring Our PACT Act of 2022 – expands VA health care and benefits for Veterans exposed to burn pits and other toxic substances. The Act expands and extends eligibility for VA health care for Veterans with toxic exposures and Veterans of the Vietnam era, Gulf War era, and Post-9/11 era. It also expands eligibility for Veterans exposed to toxic substances. If you have questions about the 2022 PACT Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs has prepared this eBook, which summarizes the Act and answers common questions.
Adaptive Grants
There are several grants available to assist Veterans, including the Specially Adapted Housing (SAH) program which provides grants to assist with building, remodeling, or purchasing an adapted home; the Special Housing Adaptation (SHA) grant which is a federal grant that provides funds for home modifications for the Veteran to continue living independently; and the Home Improvements and Structural Alteration (HISA) grant to make medically necessary modifications to a Veteran’s home to improve access and mobility.
Agent Orange: Vietnam and Beyond
Agent Orange is a blend of herbicides (chemicals used to kill plants), which the U.S. Military employed as part of its herbicidal warfare program during the Vietnam War and in other parts of Asia. Agent Orange was intended as a tactical strategy to remove dense foliage that provided enemy cover.
Aid & Attendance
The Aid & Attendance 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 is an excellent potential source of funds for long-term care, whether at home, at an assisted living facility, or at a nursing home.
Burn Pits
Burn pits were a common way to get rid of trash and waste at Military Sites in Iraq and Afghanistan, but they have been used for many years. This method was used at large bases and small forward operating bases (FOB). Burn pits cause incomplete combustion and generate plumes of contaminants. Burn pits are believed to have contributed to many health problems relating to veterans and current service members.
Camp Lejeune Water Contamination
People living or working at U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, during the 1950s through the 1980s were potentially exposed to contaminated drinking water. That water contained toxic chemicals including industrial solvents and benzene. It is estimated that as many as one million military and civilian staff and their families may have been exposed.
Concurrent Pay – Military Retirement Benefits
For more than 100 years before 1999, all disabled military retirees were required to fund their own veterans’ disability compensation by forfeiting one dollar of earned pay for each dollar received in veterans’ disability compensation. Since 1999, Congress has enacted legislation to progressively expand eligibility criteria for relief of the retired pay disability offset and reduce the burden of financial sacrifice on disabled military retirees.
Eligibility
Eligibility for most VA benefits is based upon discharge from active military service under other than dishonorable conditions. Dishonorable and bad conduct discharges issued by a general court-martial may bar VA benefits. Certain VA benefits require service during wartime.
Fiduciary Program
At the Department of Veterans Affairs, fiduciaries are appointed to assist a veteran who is unable to properly manage the financial benefits they receive from the VA.
Hearing Loss & Tinnitus
This book will cover the basics of how the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) determines the level of hearing loss and the process for receiving compensation for treatment of hearing loss and tinnitus. Hearing loss and tinnitus are particularly common disabilities found in veterans. Unfortunately, because so many veterans are affected, the government limits those who can receive compensation through regulations.
Ionizing Radiation: Atomic Veterans
Ionizing Radiation (IR) is high-energy radiation that can cause adverse health effects in high doses. Most, but not all, of the Veterans affected by Ionizing Radiation are referred to as “Atomic Veterans.” If you were exposed to ionizing radiation during military service, you may be eligible for VA Disability compensation.
Last Respects to Honor a Veteran
Veterans, as well as spouses and dependent children of Veterans and active duty service members, may be eligible for VA burial and memorial benefits including burial in a national cemetery, a headstone to mark the grave of a Veteran interred in a private cemetery or a Presidential Memorial Certificate for loved ones. Inside, you will find sections addressing eligibility, benefits, headstones and markers, Burial Flags, Presidential Memorial Certificates and reimbursement of burial expenses.
LHFV Playbook: Medical Exams
At Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC it’s our duty to put veterans in the best possible position to win their claim; similar to the role of a coach. Our role as coaches is most prominent when a veteran is preparing for a medical examination. Fear and anxiety of exams are due to a lack of preparation and awareness. We alleviate this uneasiness by educating clients on what they can expect on exam day and how it can be used to strengthen their claim. So, take a look at our “playbook” to see how our staff has been able to lead clients to victory since 1998!
Permanent Rating
A permanent rating may be assigned when medical evidence strongly suggests your condition will not improve over time. The severity of your condition(s) will factor into this, as will your age at the time of your claim. This e-book serves as an overview of the total, permanent, and protected disability ratings.
PFAS
PFAS is a group of synthetic, manmade, heat-resistant chemicals that have been manufactured and used in a variety of different ways. These chemicals do not break down in the environment and the human body. These chemicals began use in the military in the 1940s
Planning Documents
Estate planning includes Wills, Trusts, and other financial documents. Veterans, in particular, may have medals and/or military decorations, memorabilia, and other personal property to pass on to their families. Such end-of-life planning documents can help eliminate potential family conflict, clear up funeral arrangements, protect your digital assets (email accounts, passwords, etc.), and allocate property in advance of a Veteran’s passing.
Presumptive Conditions
Over the years, the VA has realized there are conditions that were a result of a veteran’s service in a specific location during a specific conflict at a particular time. In 2010, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki announced the Department of Veterans Affairs was taking steps to make it easier for Veterans to obtain disability compensation for certain diseases in the form of the Presumptive Conditions List.
Property Tax – The Disabled Veteran’s Exemption
In order to be eligible for the Disabled Veteran’s exemption, the disabled veteran must meet certain criteria, including having been honorably discharged from the armed forces of the United States, be a Michigan resident, meet one of three disability award categories with the Department of Veteran’s Affairs (VA): 1) to be permanently and totally disabled as a result of military service and entitled to Veterans’ benefits at the 100% rate; 2) have received a certificate from the VA, or its successors, and 3) certifying that he/she is receiving or has received pecuniary assistance due to disability for specially adapted housing.
Sleep Apnea
Sleep Apnea is a sleep disorder in which breathing repeatedly stops and starts. Its symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment are outlined in this e-book, including how sleep apnea affects women. If you suffer from sleep apnea, you could be entitled to a service connection for this disability.
Social Security Disability vs. Veterans Disability Benefits
This eBook is an introduction to Social Security Disability Benefits and the differences between SSD and VA Disability Claims. Veterans with disability ratings from the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) who then apply for Social Security Disability Benefits are often confused why they are not immediately approved after receiving their VA rating. This is especially true if that rating is 100%. Veterans often submit their VA Rating Decisions in support of their SSD claims and are surprised when they are denied.
State Veteran Home Guide
State Veteran Homes are facilities that provide nursing homes, domiciliary, and adult day care to veterans. Each of the fifty states and Puerto Rico have at least one Veterans Home, and some states allow non-veteran spouses to stay in the Home. This e-book is meant to serve as a basic overview of State Veteran Homes today and help you decide if they are the right fit for you and your family.
