By Debbie Gardner
dgardner@thereminder.com
As Director of Northampton Veterans Services, Steven Connor has been helping veterans in that city understand their benefits since 2004; as the chief advocate for Hampshire County veterans, he’s also been helping vets and their families in 11 additional communities since 2008. In addition, Connor has served as past president of the Massachusetts Veterans’ Service Officers Association and Western Mass Veterans Service Officers Association. A tireless advocate for veterans, Connor has participated in many statewide committees including MassVetAdvisor.org advisory committee and the Governors Committee to develop and implement The Integrated Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness among Veterans.
Eric Segundo has been director of veterans services for the Town of Ludlow since 2013. A veteran of 2005’s Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) campaign, in 2017, Segundo was elected as state commander to the Veterans of Foreign Wars Department of Massachusetts, and became the first OIF/OEF veteran to serve in that role. He continues with the VFW as the National Council Member for Massachusetts
With Veteran’s Day in November, Prime reached out to tap the vast understanding these two men possess regarding the benefits soon-to-be-retied and retired vets can access for their service.
Here’s what Connor and Seguindo had to share:
Q: Most vets are familiar with benefits such as education and mortgage help when they are discharged. Are there also any type of benefits available at retirement age, and how does that work?
“The two most sought after benefits provided through the Veterans Administration (VA) to fight veterans preparing for or already retired are healthcare benefits and service-connected disabilities that come on as veterans age. There is a large array of health services offered to veterans that are determined eligible,” said Connor.
“If you qualify for VA health care, you’ll receive coverage for the services you need to help you get and stay healthy,” said Seguindo.” VA health care, covers regular checkups with your primary care provider and appointments with specialists (like cardiologists, gynecologists, and mental health providers). You can access veterans health care services like home health and geriatric (elder) care, and you can get medical equipment, prosthetics, and prescriptions.”
According to Connor, “The most important thing to remember is eligibility changes, often based on changing legislation and budgeting issues. If you were told five or 10 years ago that you are not eligible there’s a good chance that could have changed over time. Currently, anyone who served in Vietnam or served at least 30 days at camp Lejeune between 1953 in 1987 are automatically eligible. Always check with your local veteran service officer to learn current eligibility standards.”
“In the world of healthcare, often when veterans leave their employment they either leave behind their health insurance plan or their employer provides them a Medicare supplement that can be costly for many now dealing with fixed incomes, “ Connor explained. “You may be eligible for VA health care benefits if you served in the active military, naval, or air service and didn’t receive a dishonorable discharge. If you enlisted after Sept. 7, 1980, or entered active duty after Oct. 16, 1981, you must have served 24 continuous months or the full period for which you were called to active duty, unless any of the descriptions below are true for you. This minimum duty requirement may not apply if you were discharged for a disability that was caused – or made worse – by your active-duty service, or you were discharged for a hardship or “early out,” or you served prior to Sept. 7, 1980.”
Connor added that “enrolling in VA healthcare may be very helpful for retired veterans who fit in to one of the VA’s priority groups. When you apply for VA health care, they’ll assign you to one of eight priority groups. This system helps to make sure that veterans who need care right away can get signed up quickly. They’ll base your priority group on your military service history, and your possible disability rating, and/or your income level. The VA will assign veterans with service-connected disabilities the highest priority. They assign the lowest priority
to veterans who earn a higher income and who don’t have any service-connected disabilities qualifying them for disability compensation (monthly payments). If you qualify for more than one priority group, we’ll assign you to the highest one.”
“The second most sought after benefit is for the onset of a service-connected disability, or the realization of a worsening condition due to age. These include hearing loss and tinnitus due to poor hearing protection during military service. The tinnitus usually happens shortly after the exposure but the hearing loss may take years or decades to get to a point where it’s noticeable. Other physical ailments due to injury while serving also become more prevalent as a veteran ages such as a knee injury and back issues to name just a few. These may be compensable issues that can move you into a higher priority group in the VA healthcare system. One often overlooked condition is the invisible wound of PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) that can potentially become severe as veterans age, and especially when they retire and have much more free time in their lives. Memories and current events make it to the point where veteran may need treatment in the VA or Vet Center, and they are here to address that.
“Lastly, is a state benefit program, under MGL chapter 115, and it is a program that assists veterans and their dependents that are on fixed incomes. If you are a Massachusetts veteran or the surviving spouse and your income is at or below 200 percent of the FPL ($2,265 a month as an individual or $3,052 as a couple) and have liquid assets less than $8,400 as an individual and $16,600 as a married couple. You may be eligible for assistance for your medical insurance, copays and prescription and other medical expenses. Visit your local Veteran Service Officer or for more information and a calculator, you can go to: https://massvetben.org.”
Seguindo noted that there is also a “VA Non-Service-Connected Pension,” which is “a needs-based benefit program for wartime veterans, who are age 65 or older or have a permanent and total non-service-connected disability, and who have limited income and net worth.” Eligibility for this benefits, according to Seguindo, includes discharge of any type that is not dishonorable, having a permanent, non-service related disability, being age 65 or older, serving at least 90 days, with one day during wartime and having “countable income that is below the maximum annual pension rate (MAPR),”
Information on this benefit, and who is eligible, is available online at https://www.va.gov/pension/.
Q: What types of insurance benefits are available to veterans? Are these limited to those approaching retirement age? What do vets need to do to access this benefit?
Connor explained that “the VA health administration is not an insurance benefit but is a healthcare plan. This plan is similar to health insurance in that it meets the federal requirement for health insurance under ACA Affordable Care Act) and there may be co-pays but there is no monthly or quarterly premiums to pay. If you have other forms of health care coverage (like a private insurance plan, Medicare, Medicaid, or TRICARE), you can use VA health care benefits along with these plans. Whether or not you have health insurance coverage doesn’t affect the VA health care benefits you can get.
Connor added that “the US Department of Veterans Affairs also provides group life insurance plans but the eligibility and the timing for applying for these insurances can be restrictive. Currently, there is veteran’s group life insurance (VGLI) and is eligible to qualifying veterans who had service members group life insurance and are within one year and 120 days of retiring or being released from active duty for a period of 31 or more days. They offer both term and whole life coverage.”
However, Connor said, “For many veterans those time periods have past and they would not be eligible to apply. The other type of life insurance provided veterans is for those with a service-connected disability or (S-DVI) if they were released from active duty on or after April 25, 1951, were rated with a service-connected disability regardless of percentage, and are in good health except for the service-connected condition. Also, they need to apply by Dec. 31 of 2022, or within two years of receiving the disability rating (whichever comes first). The reason for the calendar restriction is the Veterans Administration is rolling out a new program starting in January 2023 and these other programs will no longer be offered. The new Veterans Affairs life insurance (VALife) will be for service-connected disabled veterans only and will not accept applications until Jan. 1, 2023.”
Q: Are there other benefits, such as long-term care, that are also available to veterans?
Connor explained that “As a veteran, you may be able to get assisted living, residential (live-in), or home health care through VA healthcare. Their long-term care services include services such as physical therapy, help with daily tasks (like bathing, dressing, making meals, and taking medicine) and comfort care and help with managing pain. There is support for caregivers who may need skilled help or a break so they can work, travel, or run errands. You can get this care in many different settings – some run by VA and others run by state or community organizations that we inspect and approve. These care settings may include: nursing homes, assisted-living centers and veterans’ own homes.”
“Another benefit that may act similar to civilian long-term care insurance is the aid and attendance program under the VA pension program,” Connor continued.”Again, the use of the word “pension” is a bit of a misnomer. The VA pension is a benefit for veterans who are unable to work due to a disability but it is not related to their service or, a veteran who has reached retirement age and may not earn enough through Social Security retirement or other retirement plans they may have. The “pension” amount is not a large amount but is there is a needs-based supplement for some veterans and their survivors. To receive this benefit you need to be a wartime veteran and those are determined by Congress and your local veteran service officer can tell you what those are. However, the pension program can be very helpful if your healthcare needs reach a point where you can no longer care for some of your own needs (activities of daily living) and you need someone else to assist you. In this case, you would enroll into the pension program with the VA Benefits administration and use medical deductions and healthcare services provided to reduce your annual income and the Veterans Administration will provide financial assistance for that care.”
