Atlanta VA Benefits Use could be on the Rise in Assisted Living

Veterans are increasingly using their benefits to pay for assisted living. But the number of beneficiaries could be higher, experts say. There are nearly 13 million wartime veterans in the United States who could qualify for nearly $2,000 monthly toward assisted living.

According to VA estimates, 2.3 million veterans who served in World War II are living in the United States, in addition to 2.6 million who served in Korea and 7.7 million in Vietnam.

To qualify, members must have served a minimum of only 90 days and must meet other medical and financial qualifications. As reported in The Wall Street Journal, about 105,000 veterans as well as a large number of widows were using their benefits as of last year.

"This can be really important not only for older Americans, but also for their kids if they're trying to deal with mom and dad and how they're going to pay" for assisted living and other long-term-care services, says Tom Pamperin, an associate deputy undersecretary in the VA's Veterans Benefits Administration.

The benefit is underused, he says, because "it doesn't occur to veterans in their 70s who may have had no encounter with the VA other than qualifying for a home loan 40 years ago that there are benefits payable to them."

Leading senior living companies are enhancing their sales and marketing strategies as well as services to residents by helping seniors navigate and process the benefit paperwork. Hershey-Pennsylvania-based Country Meadows Retirement Communities received an ALFA 2010 Best of the Best Award for its Veterans’ Benefits Program. Through this award program, the Assisted Living Federation of America each year recognizes best practices in senior living.

The Veterans’ Benefit Program is a valuable and much-needed service to residents and their families says Eileen Kutzler with Country Meadows, who personally has helped dozens of residents receive their veterans’ benefits. The process can be onerous, Kutzler says; applications can be up to 23 pages long and take more than eight months of back-and-forth communications with the federal agency.

For assistance with Assisted Living arrangements, contact Maria de la Guardia or Susan Reeder of Assisted Living Locators by email at info@assisteliving-atlantaga.com or by phone at (404)-410-2446. The website for Assisted Living Locators is www.AssistedLiving-AtlantaGA.com.

About Atlanta: Atlanta was founded in 1837 as the end of the Western and Atlantic railroad line (it was first named Marthasville in honor of the then-governor's daughter, nicknamed Terminus for its rail location, and then changed soon after to Atlanta, the feminine of Atlantic -- as in the railroad).  Today the fast-growing city remains a transportation hub, not just for the country but also for the world: Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport is one of the nation's busiest in daily passenger flights.  Direct flights to Europe, South America, and Asia have made metro Atlanta easily accessible to the more than 1,000 international businesses that operate here and the more than 50 countries that have representation in the city through consulates, trade offices, and chambers of commerce.  The city has emerged as a banking center and is the world headquarters for 13 Fortune 500 companies.