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You Bet Your VA Life Insurance!

September 15, 2016

by Lawyers With Purpose with No Comment Asset Protection Legal Technical Systems & Processes VA

Among the benefits that veterans may access through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is life insurance. Considering the often-hazardous duty that veterans have encountered and survived, the VA’s life insurance programs are meant to offer a measure of financial security to the family for little or no cost. And proceeds from a life insurance policy on a veteran, no matter whether a VA policy or not, are not considered income by the VA, which can be a valuable benefit for a surviving spouse.

The various VA life insurance programs are listed below with the ubiquitous corresponding VA acronym.

Service members’ Group Life Insurance (SGLI)
- Service members’ Group Life Insurance Traumatic Injury Protection (TSGLI)
- Family Service members' Group Life Insurance (FSGLI)
- Service members’ Group Life Insurance Disability Extension (SGLI-DE)
Service-Disabled Veterans’ Insurance (S-DVI)
Veterans’ Group Life Insurance (VGLI)
Veterans’ Mortgage Life Insurance (VMLI)

As the names suggest, not all of these life insurance programs are meant for veterans. The only ones that are available to veterans are the last three. The first four programs are applicable to active service members or their dependents. Specifically, Service members' Group Life Insurance is term life insurance coverage for eligible service members that extends until 120 days after separation from service. Coverage under SGLI is $3.50/month for increments of $50,000 up to a maximum death benefit of $400,000 at a maximum monthly premium of $28.

Apart from basic SGLI, there are three versions of SGLI for specific circumstances. For an additional $1 premium per month, Service members'’ Group Life Insurance Traumatic Injury Protection (TSGLI) provides for a benefit paid in life if the service member suffers a loss due to traumatic injury like amputation, blindness, and paraplegia. There is also SGLI for dependents called Family Service members' Group Life Insurance (FSGLI). And the Service members' Group Life Insurance Disability Extension (SGLI-DE) is an extension of coverage for up to two years if the service member is totally disabled at separation.

After eligible active service, only veterans, and not their dependents, have VA life insurance options: the Service-Disabled Veterans’ Insurance (S-DVI), Veterans’ Group Life Insurance (VGLI), and the Veterans’ Mortgage Life Insurance (VMLI). Veterans who receive a new service-connected disability rating have two years to apply for Service-Disabled Veterans’ Insurance (S-DVI). A “new” service-connected disability rating does not include an increase of a previously held rating, nor a rating of Individual Unemployability, which is a special rating under which the VA can pay 100% of full disability compensation to someone whose service-connected disabilities are not rated at that level. Basic coverage under S-DVI, which offers both term and permanent type plans, starts at $10,000, and supplemental coverage can be purchased up to $30,000. If the new service-connected disability began before the age of 65 and lasted six consecutive months, the premiums for the first $10,000 in S-DVI coverage are waived.

For any service member who was covered by a SGLI policy during active duty and does not want to lose that coverage beyond the given 120 days after separation, there is the option of converting SGLI to a Veterans’ Group Life Insurance (VGLI) policy or even to a commercial policy. VGLI is a term life insurance product that provides lifetime coverage as long as the premiums are paid. Coverage can be the same amount as the original SGLI policy or can be reduced by increments of $10,000. Once enrolled, you can increase coverage by $25,000 every five years up to a maximum coverage of $400,000

The final insurance program available to veterans is Veterans’ Mortgage Life Insurance (VMLI), which is specifically for severely disabled veterans who have received a VA Specially Adapted Housing (SAH) grant to help build, remodel, or purchase a home, have the title to the home, and have a mortgage on the home. There is also an application deadline of age 70. A VMLI policy provides coverage equal to the amount of the mortgage still owed, up to $200,000, and is payable only to the mortgage holder. It is a decreasing term life insurance that reduces as the mortgage balance declines.

There is a convenient tool called Overview of VA Insurance Benefits created by the VA that allows you to pick the insurance program and then get further guidance on specific program eligibility. If a service member is qualified for SGLI, he or she, along with their non-service-member spouse, is automatically enrolled. To qualify, the applicant has to be an active-duty member of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, or Coast Guard; a commissioned member of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration or the U.S. Public Health Service; a cadet or midshipman of the U.S. military academies or the Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) engaged in authorized training and practice cruises; or certain reserve members.

Veterans, on the other hand, must complete applications for VA life insurance products. Complete and file form VA Form 29-4364 for Service-Disabled Veterans’ Insurance (S-DVI) or apply online at https://www.insurance.va.gov/portal/. Veterans’ Group Life Insurance (VGLI) requires completion of VA form SGLV 8714 or an online application at the Prudential website: https://giosgli.prudential.com/osgli/web/OSGLIMenu.html. Finally, one can only apply for Veterans’ Mortgage Life Insurance (VMLI) by completing VA form 29-8636.

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By Sabrina A. Scott, Paralegal, The Elder & Disability Law Firm of Victoria L. Collier, PC, and Director of VA Services for Lawyers with Purpose.

Victoria L. Collier, Veteran of the United States Air Force, 1989-1995 and United States Army Reserves, 2001-2004. Victoria is a Certified Elder Law Attorney through the National Elder Law Foundation, Author of “47 Secret Veterans Benefits for Seniors”; Author of “Paying for Long Term Care: Financial Help for Wartime Veterans: The VA Aid & Attendance Benefit”; Founder of The Elder & Disability Law Firm of Victoria L. Collier, PC; Co-Founder of Lawyers with Purpose; and Co-Founder of Veterans Advocate Group of America.

Impact of Executive Order 13658 Establishing a Minimum Wage for Contractors on VA-Contracted Nursing Homes

August 2, 2016

by Lawyers With Purpose with 2 Comments Asset Protection VA

Executive Order (EO) 13658 “Establishing a Minimum Wage for Contractors” was signed by President Obama on February 12, 2014 to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 for all federally contracted workers. The intent of this EO was “to promote economy and efficiency in procurement by contracting with sources who adequately compensate their workers.” However, there may be unintended consequences to this federally mandated minimum wage increase in the form of a decrease in VA-contracted nursing homes.

The implementing regulations were drafted by the Department of Labor, followed by a public comment period that attracted more than 6,500 comments. The final rule became effective on December 8. It raises the hourly minimum wage paid by federal contractors and subcontractors to workers performing work on covered federal contracts to $10.10 per hour. It applies to contracts beginning January 1, 2015 and also includes potential future increases by an amount to be determined annually by the Secretary of Labor. In 2016, it was increased to $10.15.

Contracts entered into on or before the effective date of January 1, 2015 will not have to comply with the 2015 federal minimum-wage increase until they expire. Prior to 2015, the McNamara-O'Hara Service Contract Act (SCA) determined what federal contractors would pay service employees based on the size of the contract. For contracts equal to or less than $2,500, contractors were required to pay no less than the federal minimum wage of $7.25 in effect as of July 24, 2009. Contracts in excess of $2,500 required contractors to pay their employees rates competitive with the local market unless previously negotiated in a prior contractor's collective bargaining agreement.

Although EO 13658 is projected to benefit around 200,000 minimum-wage workers (Department of Labor Fact Sheet: Final Rule to Implement Executive Order 13658, Establishing A Minimum Wage For Contractors), it may incidentally impact veterans’ long-term care, and not for the better. Contracting agencies – like the Veterans Administration – are not only responsible for ensuring that the clause implementing the Executive Order minimum wage requirement is included in any new contracts or solicitations for contracts, but they must also withhold funds when a contractor or subcontractor fails to comply with that clause. For this reason, there are nursing homes that are choosing not to renew or pursue VA contracts due to the financial impact of the requirement to increase the salary of any minimum wage employees.

Unlike VA Community Living Centers that are owned and run by the VA and state veteran’s nursing homes that are owned and run by the state, contract nursing homes are privately owned but have contracts with the VA to provide long-term care paid or subsidized by the VA. What does EO 13658 mean to such nursing homes? This year it means that, if they want to contract with the VA, they will have to pay their employees at least $10.15/hour – an increase of 40% over the older federal minimum wage of $7.25. Some nursing homes are small and will simply not be able to afford this mandate, and those nursing homes that can afford it may decide the VA contract is not worth the cut into their profit margins.

A further nail in the coffin lid of VA-contracted nursing homes may be the proposed EO 13706 Establishing Paid Sick Leave for Federal Contractors signed by President Obama on September 7, 2015. The comment period, which was extended through April 12, 2016, is now over, and we are awaiting publication of a final rule that promises to require federal contractors to also provide paid sick leave to their employees.

By Sabrina A. Scott, Paralegal, The Elder & Disability Law Firm of Victoria L. Collier, PC and Director of VA Services for Lawyers with Purpose.

Victoria L. Collier, Veteran of the United States Air Force, 1989-1995 and United States Army Reserves, 2001-2004. Victoria is a Certified Elder Law Attorney through the National Elder Law Foundation; Author of “47 Secret Veterans Benefits for Seniors”; Author of “Paying for Long Term Care: Financial Help for Wartime Veterans: The VA Aid & Attendance Benefit”; Founder of The Elder & Disability Law Firm of Victoria L. Collier, PC; Co-Founder of Lawyers with Purpose; and Co-Founder of Veterans Advocate Group of America.

Where in the world is Janesville, Wisconsin? Possible changes to where VA claims should be filed.

July 14, 2016

by Lawyers With Purpose with One Comment Systems & Processes VA

If you had asked me a few months ago where you should mail your VA non-service-connected (NSC) disability pension claims, I would have answered with conviction . . . it depends! I’m not trying to be funny, it’s just that it literally depended on the state where the claimant resides. Every state is served by one of three Pension Management Centers (PMC): Philadelphia, Milwaukee, or St. Paul. Philadelphia, PA serves the eastern states; Milwaukee, WI serves the central states; and St. Paul, MN serves the rest of the states from Minnesota to the west coast. Alaska and Hawaii are served by the St. Paul PMC as well. Claimants living in Mexico, Central and South America, and the Caribbean should file in St. Paul for NSC disability pension claims and appeals of those claims. Residents of all other foreign countries should file such claims at Philadelphia’s PMC. See Resources below for mailing addresses and a list of all corresponding states and countries. The Pension Management Centers, as their name suggests, focus on pension benefits and do not handle any service-connected-disability compensation claims, or claims for both compensation and NSC disability pension, sometimes called dual claims.

Title 38 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) §3.155 on “How to file a claim” begins, “The following paragraphs describe the manner and methods in which a claim can be initiated and filed,” but in all the detail that follows, nowhere does it tell you where specifically to mail a claim. The VA Adjudication manual M21-1 similarly fails to give such particulars. If you search online for “how to apply for veterans’ benefits,” you may eventually end up at the VA website that – as of the time this was written – still clearly directs you to “mail your application to the Pension Management Center (PMC) that serves your state.” However, since last year, rumblings of a change have begun to be heard that the mailing process may be undergoing an update.

That brings us to Janesville, WI, which may be familiar to those who file service-connected-disability compensation claims, but may not be to those of us who deal exclusively with NSC disability claims. It is the Janesville Evidence Intake Center (EIC) in Wisconsin where all claimants residing in states roughly west of the Mississippi have been filing service-connected-disability compensation claims for some time. However, Janesville may become the hub of a centralized mail intake system for all veterans’ pension AND compensation claims from all over the world. Since last year, the VA has periodically inserted with their correspondence the directive that all mail should now be sent to a PO box at the EIC in Janesville. In addition, an 11-page VA fact sheet on centralized mail processing was quietly issued in March 2016 stating that “New addresses for the submission of material went into effect on July 7, 2014.”

Per this fact sheet, the U.S. Postal Service is apparently automatically redirecting material that is mailed to Regional Offices or PMCs to Janesville. Specific PO boxes have been designated to specific categories of claims. However, from this hub, the claim will eventually be routed back to the pension management center where you are currently sending your claims for processing. Therefore, those who have been routinely filing NSC disability pension claims at the appropriate PMC may now be faced with a dilemma: obey the “new” – and by no means widely-known – directive, or continue as before. At our law firm, except for replies to VA letters that provide a specific return address, we continue to file all our claims at the appropriate PMC. Some law firms, in an abundance of caution, have started filing at both the PMC and the Janesville EIC. And yet others use only the addresses and fax number in Janesville that are given on the fact sheet.

So ask me today where you should mail your VA non-service-connected (NSC) disability pension claims and I will answer with conviction that you should take your pick – from the addresses provided below in the Resources section.

Resources

Philadelphia VA Regional Office

5000 Wissahickon Ave.

PO Box 8079

Philadelphia, PA 19101

Fax #: (215) 842-4410

Service Area: Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Maine , Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, all foreign countries other than Mexico, Central and South America, and the Caribbean

Milwaukee VA Pension Center

PO Box 342000

Milwaukee, WI 53234-9907

Fax #: (215) 842-4430

Service Area: Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, Tennessee, Wisconsin

St. Paul VA Regional Office

Pension Management Center (335/21P)

PO BOX 11000

St. Paul, MN 55111-0000

Fax #: (215) 842-4420

Service Area: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, Mexico, Central and South America, and the Caribbean

Janesville Evidence Intake Center

Fax #: (844) 822-5246

Philadelphia PMC

Dept. of Veterans Affairs

Claims Intake Center

Attention: Philadelphia Pension Center

PO Box 5206

Janesville, WI 53547-5206

St. Paul PMC

Dept. of Veterans Affairs

Claims Intake Center

Attention: St. Paul Pension Center

PO Box 5365

Janesville, WI 53547-5365

Milwaukee PMC

Dept. of Veterans Affairs

Claims Intake Center

Attention: Milwaukee Pension Center

PO Box 5192

Janesville, WI 53547-5192

If you would like to learn more about becoming a Lawyers With Purpose member join us for our FREE webinar "Running Your Firm Like A Business" on Wednesday, July 27th at 8 EST / 5 PST. Click here to reserve your spot today.

By Sabrina A. Scott, Paralegal, The Elder & Disability Law Firm of Victoria L. Collier, PC and Director of VA Services for Lawyers with Purpose.

Victoria L. Collier, Veteran of the United States Air Force, 1989-1995 and United States Army Reserves, 2001-2004. Victoria is a Certified Elder Law Attorney through the National Elder Law Foundation; Author of “47 Secret Veterans Benefits for Seniors”; Author of “Paying for Long Term Care: Financial Help for Wartime Veterans: The VA Aid & Attendance Benefit”; Founder of The Elder & Disability Law Firm of Victoria L. Collier, PC; Co-Founder of Lawyers with Purpose: and Co-Founder of Veterans Advocate Group of America.

Crime Bill Introduced to Protect Veterans

April 5, 2016

by Lawyers With Purpose with No Comment VA

Congressmen Tom Rooney (R-FL) and Ted Deutch (D-FL) introduced the “Preventing Crimes Against Veterans Act of 2016” on March 2. Rooney, an Army veteran, is a member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Veterans Affairs.

Rep. Rooney asserts that veterans in his district have brought to his attention that individuals are promising to expedite veterans’ claims through the horrendously backlogged system. After charging an exorbitant fee, the individual can no longer be found. Rooney has not stated whether these individuals are accredited by the Veterans Administration or not.

The bill would be an additional tool to prevent fraud against veterans. It would impose fines, imprisonment for up to five years, or both for anyone who “knowingly engages in any scheme or artifice to defraud a veteran of veterans’ benefits, or in connection with obtaining veteran’s benefits for that veteran.”

Rep. Rooney was involved in introducing the three-year look back penalties for veterans who transferred assets for less than fair market value. It is unclear whether this bill is intended to extend to practitioners who provide veterans benefits planning and long-term care planning advice to wartime veterans seeking pension benefits. This topic does not come up in his one-minute speech to Congress when introducing the bill, which can be seen here: https://rooney.house.gov/media-center/videos/preventing-crimes-against-veterans-act-one-minute. It can be argued that it will, given that the bill uses the generic language of “and for other purposes.”

Here is the text of the entire bill as it was introduced:

HR. 4676

To amend title 18, United States Code, to provide an additional tool to prevent certain frauds against veterans, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

March 2, 2016

Mr. Rooney of Florida (for himself and Mr. Deutch) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

A BILL

To amend title 18, United States Code, to provide an additional tool to prevent certain frauds against veterans, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the “Preventing Crimes Against Veterans Act of 2016”.

SEC. 2. ADDITIONAL TOOL TO PREVENT CERTAIN FRAUDS AGAINST VETERANS.

(a) In General.—Chapter 47 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:

“§ 1041. Frauds regarding veterans’ benefits.

“(a) Whoever knowingly engages in any scheme or artifice to defraud a veteran of veterans’ benefits, or in connection with obtaining veteran’s benefits for that veteran, shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than five years, or both.

“(b) In this section—

“(1) the term ‘veteran’ has the meaning given that term in section 101 of title 38; and

“(2) the term ‘veterans’ benefits’ means any benefit provided by Federal law for a veteran.”.

(b) Clerical Amendment.—The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 47 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new item:

If you would like to learn more about adding Veteran Benefits Planning to your estate or elder law practice join our free webinar on Thursday, April 21st at 8EST. Just click here to reserve your spot today.

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Victoria L. Collier, Co-Founder, Lawyers with Purpose, LLC, Certified Elder Law Attorney through the National Elder Law Foundation; Fellow of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys; Founder and Managing Attorney of The Elder & Disability Law Firm of Victoria L. Collier, PC; Co-Founder of Veterans Advocates Group of America; Entrepreneur; Author; and nationally renowned Presenter.

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VA Health Benefits

March 31, 2016

by Lawyers With Purpose with One Comment Legal Technical VA

Given how much the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) has been in the news for unnecessary wait times and inappropriate scheduling practices that have negatively impacted many veterans, you may not see any value in educating your clients regarding potential VA health benefits. However, VA health benefits might offer more economical health care and/or may be an option for your clients who are underinsured. Another advantage is greater access to health care nationwide, as you may seek care at any VA health care facility once enrolled in the VA health care system.

What are they exactly?

When you enroll in VA health care, you are eligible for what is termed a Medical Benefits Package. This package consists of hospital, outpatient, and extended care services providing basic and preventive care, as well as prescription drugs, emergency care and even in some cases, services like: rehabilitative services; professional counseling and mental health services; durable medical equipment, including eyeglasses and hearing aids; home health services; reconstructive (plastic) surgery; hospice care; and dental care. What exactly is available to the recipient of VA health benefits will depend on the veteran’s unique eligibility status and whether such care or services are deemed medically necessary by VA health care providers. You receive a booklet called the Veterans Health Benefits Handbook after enrollment that gives you the specifics of your individual Medical Benefits Package.

Who qualifies for them?

If your client served in the active military, naval or air service and was discharged under any condition other than dishonorable, the client may qualify for VA health care benefits. There is a minimum duty requirement for veterans who enlisted after September 7, 1980, but there are also many exceptions both before and after this date, so you should consult 38 CFR §17.31 Duty periods defined for the definitions of duty periods applicable to eligibility for medical benefits.

Although family members, with very limited exception, cannot access the VA health care system, family members of veterans may be eligible for CHAMPVA. This is a program that provides health insurance coverage to dependents of a qualifying sponsor who is, or was at the time of death, rated permanently and totally disabled due to a service-connected disability or who died of a service-connected disability.

How do you enroll?

You can apply for VA health care by completing VA Form 10-10EZ Application for Health Benefits and submitting it in person or by mail to the enrollment coordinator at any VA Medical Center. The 10-10EZ form has sections to complete with information about military service, health insurance, and finances. Private health care insurance does not affect eligibility for VA health care. The instructions for the financial section specify that only non-service-connected and service-connected veterans rated at 0% must provide this financial information. However, they go on to state that those receiving VA pension or compensation and/or Medicaid benefits, among others, are not required to disclose financial information. In fact, after a claimant is approved for non-service-connected pension, he/she should be automatically mailed enrollment information for the VA health care system. The financial information is used to determine eligibility and copay responsibility for VA Health Benefits and – with the exceptions noted above – may be a requirement of enrollment.

More information

As part of enrollment, the applicant is assigned to a Priority Group based on the severity and nature of the applicant’s disability and/or income. There are eight Priority Groups for enrollment, from highest priority at #1 to the lowest at #8:

Veterans with service-connected disabilities 50% or more disabling, or those unemployable due to service-connected conditions;
Veterans with service-connected disabilities 30% or 40% disabling;
Veterans who were Prisoners of War (POWs), were awarded the Purple Heart or Medal of Honor, whose discharge was for a service-connected disability, with service-connected disabilities 10% or 20% disabling, or special eligibility under Title 38, U.S.C. § 1151;
Veterans receiving aid and attendance or housebound VA benefits or who have been determined by the VA to be catastrophically disabled;
Non-service-connected veterans and non-compensable service-connected veterans rated 0% disabled with annual income below the VA’s and geographically (based on your resident ZIP code) adjusted income limits, veterans receiving VA base pension benefits, or eligible for Medicaid programs;
Compensable service-connected veterans rated at 0% and various categories of veterans whose military service meets certain requirements;
Veterans with gross household income below the geographically adjusted income limits (GMT) for their resident location;
Veterans with gross household income above the VA and the geographically adjusted income limits for their resident location.

The Priority Group assignment will determine what the VA Health Benefits enrollee will pay, if anything, in copayments for their health benefits. Generally, the cost of care is free when related to service-connected disabilities, but there may be a copay for all other services, to include prescriptions.

Despite the fact that, when the VHA makes headlines, it’s often not for a good reason, the news isn’t all bad. The VA has taken corrective action to identify and resolve the issues that have plagued the VHA, including requesting the VHA to conduct an audit which then led to the Accelerating Access to Care Initiative. The VA also publishes comprehensive monthly updates detailing pending and completed appointments and average wait times that allow for oversight, and also allow a beneficiary to select a VA Medical Center with lower wait times when there is more than one in their area. For further information on Veterans Health Benefits beyond this overview, consult the website of the Veterans Health Administration at http://www.va.gov/health/.

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By Sabrina A. Scott, Paralegal, The Elder & Disability Law Firm of Victoria L. Collier, PC and Director of VA Services for Lawyers With Purpose.

Victoria L. Collier, Veteran of the United States Air Force, 1989-1995 and United States Army Reserves, 2001-2004. Victoria is a Certified Elder Law Attorney through the National Elder Law Foundation; Author of “47 Secret Veterans Benefits for Seniors”; Author of “Paying for Long Term Care: Financial Help for Wartime Veterans: The VA Aid & Attendance Benefit”; Founder of The Elder & Disability Law Firm of Victoria L. Collier, PC; Co-Founder of Lawyers with Purpose; and Co-Founder of Veterans Advocate Group of America.

Is the VA Opportunity Dying?

March 28, 2016

by Lawyers With Purpose with One Comment VA

As the Veterans Administration plans to implement new laws that would impose a three-year look back for gifts, creating penalties of up to 10 years for both transfers of assets and purchase of annuities, lawyers frequently ask me, “Are we going to be able to do any planning and help wartime veterans and their widows anymore?” What they are really asking is, “Will these changes hurt my law firm?” and “Do I need to stop doing VA benefits planning?”

The simple, candid answers are: “Yes, possibly” and “No, the clients need you now more than ever.”
There is no doubt that the current way of doing things will change. For example, “crisis” VA planning (where an individual could do planning one month and be eligible for benefits the next month) will be reduced to those clients who have limited funds who seek only pre-application consultative advice. Thus, instead of being able to charge for a plan of eligibility, the lawyer may only charge a consultation fee. As always, no one will be able to charge to assist with the completion and filing of an application for benefits.

Even though crisis VA planning will be virtually dead, a new age of pre-planning will emerge. Like Medicaid planning, wherein people structure five-year “wait and see” asset protection plans, veterans will need to construct three-year planning options. This will lead to a new opportunity for advocates to create excellent estate plans that address traditional estate planning and death distribution desires, as well as VA benefits and future Medicaid benefits. This will also lead to the opportunity for licensed insurance brokers to reposition assets into three- to five-year immediate annuities to create guaranteed income streams to pay for the client’s living expenses and health care needs during the look back period. Instead of competing for business, lawyers and financial advisors should work together to create a solid long-term care plan, or, if permissible in your state, the lawyer should consider obtaining a license to sell insurance products to keep the plan under one roof and bolster income at the same time.

The look back and resulting penalties are not the only proposed law changes. The VA also plans to limit not only the acreage that applicants may have attached to their home place, but also the deductibility of certain medical expenses, etc. With all of the changes and the remaining ambiguity in the processing of the claims due to the language of the changes, clients will need lawyers to assist with appeals. Lawyers can charge reasonable fees, as approved by the VA, after a notice of disagreement has been filed. Presumably not many lawyers will want to do appellate work, leaving the field wide open for those who do.

If you want to learn more about Lawyers With Purpose and what we have to offer our members join our FREE WEBINAR on Thursday, April 21st at 8 EST / 5 PST titled "Four Essentials For A Profitable Practice". Click here to join us. Here is just some of what you'll get:

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Victoria L. Collier, Veteran of the United States Air Force, 1989-1995 and United States Army Reserves, 2001-2004. Victoria is a Certified Elder Law Attorney through the National Elder Law Foundation; Author of “47 Secret Veterans Benefits for Seniors”; Author of “Paying for Long Term Care: Financial Help for Wartime Veterans: The VA Aid & Attendance Benefit”; Founder of The Elder & Disability Law Firm of Victoria L. Collier, PC; Co-Founder of Lawyers with Purpose; and Co-Founder of Veterans Advocate Group of America.

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House Bill 4351: Going After Pension Poachers

March 4, 2016

by Lawyers With Purpose with 3 Comments Asset Protection Legal Technical VA

House Bill 4351 should be stopped!

For the past several years, bills have been introduced for Congressional approval that would impose a three-year look back, and penalties up to 10 years, for veterans and their spouses who give away their assets and then apply for a pension program designed for indigent wartime veterans. The bills were limited to addressing the concerns of deliberate impoverishment by veterans with the help of lawyers, financial advisors, and others. The bills never passed.

In January 2015, the Veterans Administration published proposed changes to the laws in the Federal Register that would change Title 38 of the Code of Federal Regulations. The VA included penalties for transfers of assets, and used very broad definitions of transfers (i.e. the purchase of an annuity), just like the previous bills that had been introduced. However, the VA went much further, proposing to (1) extend beyond its Congressional authority and (2) extend beyond the scope of the perceived needed changes.

Beyond VA Authority.

Under the pension program for wartime veterans, the claimant must meet an income and asset standard. With regard to income, the VA deducts from gross income all permissible medical expenses. Home healthcare is a permissible medical expense. But the VA proposed to limit the deduction to the average cost of home healthcare based on a national average set two years prior to the proposed changes, which would be $21 per hour. The law is clear that if a medical expense is deductible, then the entire amount must be deducted, and a change of this nature is in violation of the Congressional right.

Beyond the Scope

The purpose of the bills introduced into Congress and the purpose of the proposed changes to the VA regulations is to prevent people from divesting themselves of assets, which they otherwise could use for themselves to pay for care, in order to qualify for tax-free income from the VA to pay for their care. The VA exceeded the purpose of these bills when they included in the proposed changes a limitation on the lot coverage for veteran’s home place. The home place and a reasonable lot area have always been exempt by the VA when applying for pension. A reasonable lot area has always been defined as the same or similar in size to those in the same community or neighborhood. Rather than keeping the long-standing laws, the VA wants to count any property value that exceeds two acres. This makes no sense under the purpose of the law changes to keep people from divesting themselves of assets. First, a 900-square-foot condo in New York City may be worth well over $1,000,000, but it would be an exempt resource under the proposed changes. Whereas, a house sitting on five acres in south Georgia would be a countable resource, even if its value is only $150,000. Moreover, the veterans may have been living in the house for 10, 20, 30 years or more and had no intention of ever filing for the VA pension when they bought the house. Thus, the change in the law has nothing to do with the perceived abuses of people trying to save their assets and qualify for benefits.

Congress has apparently given up on trying to pass a bill that specifically details a look back and penalties for wartime veterans who give money away to qualify for the pension. After all, this is an election year and that would not look very good.

Nonetheless, a few members have found a sneaky way to get the VA’s proposed changes passed by Congress without Congress necessarily knowing what they are actually passing. House Resolution 4351, submitted in the House of Representatives on January 8, was sponsored by Rep. Matt Cartwright of Pennsylvania and co-sponsored by Rep. Sanford Bishop of Georgia, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee of Texas and Rep. Walter Jones of North Carolina. It has been referred to the Committee on Veteran’s Affairs.

Its stated goal is “To protect individuals who are eligible for increased pension under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs on the basis of need of regular aid and attendance from dishonest, predatory, or otherwise unlawful practices, and for other purposes.” The act would be titled, “Veterans Care Financial Protection Act of 2016.”

This sounds really good, because Congress is professing to protect veterans from financial predators. Second, the act does nothing more than mandate that the secretary of the VA work with the heads of federal agencies, states, and such experts as the secretary considers appropriate to “develop and implement Federal and State standards to protect individuals from dishonest, predatory, or otherwise unlawful practices.” The VA would then have 180 days to submit the standards to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and of the House of Representatives. If this resolution passes, the VA can just hand over the proposed changes in the laws as the standards. The resolution does not say what the two committees are to do once they receive the standards from the VA.

The VA plans to finalize proposed changes (with modifications) by early summer. What is unclear is whether a passage of this “blind” resolution would immediately sanctify any changes the VA has made, or if the changes cannot take effect until after the two committees have taken some action of approval. What is clear is that advocates and veterans must once again push to make your political leaders, specifically those in the two Veterans’ Affairs committees, aware of these damaging changes that have no bearing on the purpose of the proposed changes – limiting home healthcare to an outdated national average and limiting the home place lot coverage to two acres instead of a reasonable lot for the area.

If you would like to know more about the VA Proposed 3 Year Lookback and Other Law Changes join our FREE WEBINAR on Wednesday, March 16th at 4EST. Click here to reserve your spot today.

Victoria L. Collier, Co-Founder, Lawyers with Purpose, LLC; Certified Elder Law Attorney through the National Elder Law Foundation; Fellow of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys; Founder and Managing Attorney of The Elder & Disability Law Firm of Victoria L. Collier, PC; Co-Founder of Veterans Advocates Group of America; Entrepreneur; Author; and nationally renowned Presenter.

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VA form 21-8049 – Request for Details of Expenses

March 1, 2016

by Lawyers With Purpose with No Comment Estate Planning Drafting Software Legal Technical VA

For all you high Fact-finder/Follow through Kolbe types, don’t panic if the VA form 21-8049 number means nothing to you. It shouldn’t necessarily. If you file non-service-connected pension claims with the VA, you may never have had occasion to use this form, which is formally called a “Request for Details of Expenses.” It is not generally part of what Lawyers with Purpose considers a fully developed VA claim, although there are those who routinely include this form with all their VA claims.

Purpose of the 21-8049

As the name of VA form 21-8049 suggests, its main purpose is to report monthly non-medical expenses as well as expenses of dependents that otherwise are not typically reported on any other forms one submits with a fully-developed claim. The 21-8049 is usually sent to a claimant to be completed when the VA requires further information after the formal claim is filed. In fact, the VA specifically states in the instructions at the top, “We need additional information to determine whether you are entitled to benefits.” The VA may request this additional information because the adjudication manual directs the adjudicator to determine “whether or not the claimant’s financial resources are sufficient to meet his/her basic needs without assistance from VA. If a claimant’s assets are large enough that the claimant could use these assets to pay living expenses for a reasonable period of time, net worth is considered a bar,” M21-1 Adjudication Procedures Manual, Part V, Subpart I, Chapter 3, Section A.1.e. The 21-8049 may not be requested for every claim you file, but if it is requested, it can delay the claim process. For that reason, some choose to include this form with every formal claim they file. Or, you may decide to complete this form only when your claimant has unusually high non-medical living expenses that you want to make evident to the VA.

How to complete the 21-8049

The current version of this form is dated Aug 2007 in the lower left corner of the first page, although the VA still accepts older versions. It is a two-page form that consists of seven sections. The instructions are minimal, but the VA does provide a toll-free number to call for assistance. Like any other VA form, it is recommended that you complete every section. Non-applicable sections should be crossed out, or you should otherwise indicate that these do not apply. Sections I and II are for listing dependents – both those living with the claimant and those not living with the claimant. Furthermore, you can specify the amount, if any, that the claimant contributes to the support of dependents not living with the claimant so that the VA will consider these amounts when evaluating whether the claimant’s net worth is sufficient.

Sections III, IV, V, and VI are for “Monthly Expenses (except medical) for you and those listed above as living with you,” “Hospital and Medical Expenses,” “Educational Expenses,” and “Expenses of Last Illness and Burial of Veteran, Spouse, or Child and Just Debts of Deceased Veteran or Parent’s Spouse,” respectively. The completion of these four sections is fairly straightforward, but a few remarks should be made to avoid potential problems. Section III lists several possible monthly expenses, like Housing, Food, Taxes, etc., and it also provides blanks for inserting other types of expenses, but this section is only for reporting non-medical expenses. For example, the line item “Housing” should not be used for reporting fees for a nursing home or assisted living facility. Instead, total medical expenses that were reported on the VA form 21P-8416 “Medical Expense Report” with the formal claim should be reported in Section IV, “Hospital and Medical Expenses,” along with a brief breakdown of the medical expenses, or simply refer the VA to the already submitted form 21P-8416. Finally, section VII is for reporting “Commercial Life Insurance Payments” to the claimant. While life insurance payouts are not considered income by the VA if the insured was a veteran, these will be considered as part of net worth and could potentially put a claimant over the asset limit unless you can document to the VA that these assets have been spent down.

What to file with the 21-8049

Documentation of the expenses listed on this form is not required but may assist in your claim. If you decide you want to start including the 21-8049 with all your formal claims, you may decide not to include further supporting documentation unless later requested by the VA. If you do refer to the VA form 21P-8416 in Section IV, you may want at least to include a copy of this form for the adjudicator’s convenience. However, if the VA sent you the form 21-8049 to be completed, they may have requested other information as well. In such cases, ensure that you submit the VA form 21-8049 with anything else requested in the VA correspondence, and that you respond by any deadlines the VA may specify.

If you want to lear more about the Veterans Administration Proposed 3 Year Lookback and Other Law Changes join our FREE WEBINAR on Wednesday, March 16th at 4 EST. Just click here to reserve your spot. Here's what you'll get:

Discover the Nuts and Bolts of the Proposed VA Changes…and What it Means for Your Practice!

On Friday, January 23, 2015, the Veterans Administration proposed changes in the Federal Register that would…

Impose a three year lookback for transfers of assets, including gifts to persons, trusts, or purchases of annuities.
Deny claims for up to 10 years due to transfers.
And exempt only the home and two acres from net worth. If a claimant's property exceeds two acres, it will count toward the net worth figure for eligibility.

By Sabrina A. Scott, Paralegal, The Elder & Disability Law Firm of Victoria L. Collier, PC and Director of VA Services for Lawyers With Purpose.

Victoria L. Collier, Veteran of the United States Air Force, 1989-1995 and United States Army Reserves, 2001-2004. Victoria is a Certified Elder Law Attorney through the National Elder Law Foundation; Author of “47 Secret Veterans Benefits for Seniors”; Author of “Paying for Long Term Care: Financial Help for Wartime Veterans: The VA Aid & Attendance Benefit”; Founder of The Elder & Disability Law Firm of Victoria L. Collier, PC; Co-Founder of Lawyers with Purpose; and Co-Founder of Veterans Advocate Group of America.

Tips For VA form 21-0779

February 19, 2016

by Lawyers With Purpose with No Comment Estate Planning Drafting Software Systems & Processes VA

Purpose of the 21-0779

The VA form 21-0779 “Request for Nursing Home Information In Connection With Claim for Aid and Attendance” is used only for certain non-service-connected pension claims, and its primary purpose is to document the level of care required by a claimant or a claimant’s dependent. The VA form 21-0779 is completed specifically for individuals who are residents of nursing homes. The importance of documenting this level of care is twofold:

To support a claim for additional pension above and beyond the base level;
To support the need for certain medical expenses.

There are three levels of non-service-connected pension that a claimant may qualify for: Base pension, Housebound, and Aid & Attendance. The base pension is the lowest pension that a claimant may be awarded. Additional funds are granted if you can document that the claimant is housebound, and even more funds go to those requiring another individual to assist with at least two activities of daily living, or ADLs. The VA also looks at level of care when considering medical expenses to offset income. Therefore, the VA form 21-0779 should document the level of care that justifies the medical expenses being declared. This applies to the claimant’s dependents as much as to the claimant. So for example, the VA will not consider the nursing home facility expense for a veteran’s spouse unless a form 21-0779 is completed for the spouse indicating the need for this level of care.

Completing the 21-0779

The VA form 21-0779 is just a single page and is mainly to be completed by a third party; that is, the nursing home. All you need to complete the form is the veteran’s – or claimant’s, if other than the veteran – name(s), and Social Security number(s). When you are completing this form for a living veteran’s spouse or other dependent, that person’s name appears in the field that requests the name of the claimant, even though, strictly speaking, the claimant is the living veteran. When downloaded from the VA website at http://www.va.gov/vaforms/, the 21-0779 has no separate instruction pages. The form is fairly straightforward to fill out, but it still provides a toll-free phone number for those who require assistance completing the form. Despite the fact that you are not completing this form yourself for the most part, you should still review all 21-0779s once completed by the nursing home and before submitting to the VA so that you can confirm that every field is answered.

What to file with the 21-0779

Nothing in particular is required to be filed with the 21-0779 form. If you determine that you do need to file this form, it should be submitted as part of a fully developed claim in order to expedite the processing. If you are filing the VA form 21-0779 with your formal claim, then you do not need to file a VA form 21-2680 “Examination for Housebound Status or Permanent Need for Regular Aid and Attendance” because the former documents that the claimant is in a nursing home and requires skilled nursing care and thus by definition has a permanent need for regular aid and attendance. This will, however, not stop some VA adjudicators from requesting the 21-2680 form in addition to the VA form 21-0779, thus we generally request all our VA clients to get a VA form 21-2680 completed as soon as they have retained us.

Always remember that this form can be used for supporting both a claim for a higher level of pension and the need for certain medical expenses. Keep those two purposes in mind when you are deciding whether or not it needs to be included as part of your VA claim, and when reviewing its completion by the nursing home to make sure there are not unexpected results with your claim.

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By Sabrina A. Scott, Paralegal, The Elder & Disability Law Firm of Victoria L. Collier, PC and Director of VA Services for Lawyers With Purpose.

Victoria L. Collier, Veteran of the United States Air Force, 1989-1995 and United States Army Reserves, 2001-2004. Victoria is a Certified Elder Law Attorney through the National Elder Law Foundation; Author of “47 Secret Veterans Benefits for Seniors”; Author of “Paying for Long Term Care: Financial Help for Wartime Veterans: The VA Aid & Attendance Benefit”; Founder of The Elder & Disability Law Firm of Victoria L. Collier, PC; Co-Founder of Lawyers with Purpose; and Co-Founder of Veterans Advocate Group of America.

Getting the Physician Form Right for Aid and Attendance

January 4, 2016

by Lawyers With Purpose with 6 Comments Estate Planning Drafting Software Legal Technical VA

Purpose of the 21-2680:

The VA form 21-2680 “Examination for Housebound Status or Permanent Need for Regular Aid and Attendance” is used to document the level of care required by a claimant or a claimant’s dependent. The VA form 21-2680 is completed by a physician based on his/her medical evaluation of the patient. The importance of documenting the level of care is two-fold:

To support a claim for additional pension above and beyond the base level AND
To support the need for certain medical expenses.

There are three levels of non-service-connected pension that a claimant may qualify for: base pension, housebound, and aid and attendance. The base pension is the lowest pension that a claimant may be awarded. Additional funds are granted if you can document that the claimant is housebound, and even more funds go to those requiring another individual to assist with at least two activities of daily living (ADLs). The VA also looks at level of care when considering medical expenses to offset income. Therefore, the VA form 21-2680 should document the level of care that justifies the medical expenses being declared. This applies to the claimant’s dependents as much as the claimant. So for example, the VA will not consider the assisted living facility expense for a veteran’s spouse unless a form 21-2680 is also completed for the spouse indicating the need for the facility to assist with at least two ADLs.

Completing the 21-2680:

The VA form 21-2680 is relatively short (two pages) and is to be completed by a third party – that is, a physician. All you need to complete the form is the veteran’s and claimant’s – if other than the veteran – name(s), Social Security number(s), and address. When you are completing the form for a living veteran’s spouse or other dependent, it is that person's name that appears in the field that requests the name of the claimant, even though, strictly speaking, the claimant is the living veteran. When downloaded from the VA website at http://www.va.gov/vaforms/, the 21-2680 has no separate instruction pages. It does state its purpose near the top of the first page: “The purpose of this examination is to record manifestations and findings pertinent to the question of whether the claimant is housebound (confined to the home or immediate premises) or in need of the regular aid and attendance of another person.”

Despite the fact that you are not completing this form yourself, you should still review all 21-2680s once completed by the physician and before submitting to the VA so that you can confirm that every field is answered and that further explanation is provided when required by the instructions. Form 21-2680 should be signed by a physician because the signatures of nurse practitioners or physician’s assistants are not acceptable. Errors and omissions of this type should be corrected before filing the claim or you may risk a delay. Most importantly, you should also confirm whether the form 21-2680 does in fact document the claimant’s housebound status or the need for aid and attendance.

Housebound status is documented by the physician’s answer to field 33, “Describe how often per day or week and under what circumstances the claimant is able to leave the home or immediate premises.” A clear indication of housebound status would include a statement from the physician such as, “Patient no longer drives and relies solely on caregivers to attend necessary doctor appointments.” The VA form 21-2680 will support the need for aid and attendance, if it provides clear evidence that the claimant needs assistance with at least two ADLs. Acceptable ADLs are bathing/showering, dressing, eating, getting in/out of bed or chair, and using the toilet. The following are not considered ADLs by the VA: walking, medication administration, meal preparation, and protective environment only. This is very important in the case of independent living facilities, the expense of which will not be considered by the VA unless the 21-2680 documents that such a facility provides a protective environment and custodial care that is supplemented by a third party providing the assistance with two or more ADLs. Otherwise the cost of the independent living facility may be considered merely rent and thus not a deductible medical expense. A clear indication of the need for aid and attendance would be input into box #25, where it asks if the claimant needs a nursing home. The answer to that question may be “no.” However, the physician should write out to the side something like, “Patient needs to live at ABC facility for a protected environment, custodial care and assistance with ADLs.”

Because of the importance of using the right language on the VA form 21-2680, the software developed by Lawyers with Purpose to complete VA claim forms produces a sample VA form 21-2680 with recommended verbiage and other guidance for the most important fields. This sample can be provided along with a blank form to the doctor for guidance with instructions that can be used if the doctor feels it applies. If the doctor does not believe that it applies, it may be that your client simply does not qualify for as high a level of care. You may still be able to file for base pension or plan to follow up with the client periodically to check if medical needs have increased.

What to file with the 21-2680

Other than the regular VA application forms, nothing else is required to be filed with this form. However, if you feel that your completed VA form 21-2680 is weak in areas, but you believe that your client’s medical condition warrants aid and attendance, you can add supporting medical records. This form should be submitted as part of a fully developed claim in order to expedite the processing. As a reminder, you may not need to file a VA form 21-2680 if your claimant is only seeking base pension. And a 21-2680 does not need to be filed if you are filing the VA form 21-0779 because the latter documents that the claimant is in a nursing home and requires skilled nursing care, and thus by definition has a permanent need for regular aid and attendance. This will however not stop some VA adjudicators from requesting the 21-2680 form nonetheless, so we generally request all of our VA clients to get one completed as soon as they have retained us – particularly because it can take some time to get the completed form back from the doctor.

Always remember that this form can be used for both supporting a claim for higher levels of pension and the need for certain medical expenses. Keep those two purposes in mind when you are deciding whether or not the VA form 21-2680 needs to be included as part of your VA claim, and when reviewing their completion by a third party to make sure there are not unexpected results with your claim.

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By Sabrina A. Scott, Paralegal, The Elder & Disability Law Firm of Victoria L. Collier, PC and Director of VA Services for Lawyers With Purpose.

Victoria L. Collier, Veteran of the United States Air Force, 1989-1995 and United States Army Reserves, 2001-2004. Victoria is a Certified Elder Law Attorney through the National Elder Law Foundation; Author of “47 Secret Veterans Benefits for Seniors”; Author of “Paying for Long Term Care: Financial Help for Wartime Veterans: The VA Aid & Attendance Benefit”; Founder of The Elder & Disability Law Firm of Victoria L. Collier, PC; Co-Founder of Lawyers with Purpose; and Co-Founder of Veterans Advocate Group of America.