The Va Fiduciary 'card'

[Julopop]

:P May I ask for comments or suggestions please? I am thinking of applying to become my fathers fiduciary (he's an 87 year old WWII vet with dementia/Alzheimers) even though I don't expect to be applying for A&A until he starts to live in an Assisted Living Facility. I don't expect that to happen for about another year - but since I've heard so much about how long it takes to get A&A approved, and then the VA can play it's Fiduciary 'card' and that can add several more months to the approval time - doesn't it sound like a good idea to get that part of the process out of the way now? My father is 10% service connected and receives a small check each month - it seems to me that the only thing that will change is that his check will be written out to me so I can cash it for him - but the good thing is that this timely process will already be behind us! What do you think? Thanks for your replies and best regards,

[Berta]

If the VA declares him unable to handle his funds or 'incompetent' for VA purposes- they might well make you his VA comp payee- even with any SSA money he receives too-but the SSA could advise you on that.

I have never heard of doing it this way-asking the VA to make this type of determination-they usually do it themselves during some claims processes- but I would think you could write to the VA and ask them about this.

It would most likely involve a C & P exam- what is he SCed for? do you feel he should be rated higher? now is the time to claim a higher rating too.

I hope he has a Health Care Proxy-

and I suggest that if there are other assets involved as well as liabilities that you seek an attorney's advice.

My neighbor, a WWII vet has been recently diagnosed with Alzheimers and these questions are coming up in the family-

he has a fairly new car he can no longer drive and a large farm, SSA retirement and also a large pension from his former job.

He still is capable of doing many things- but the future will change that.

States also have specific fiduciary laws I think-

unless you are only seeking to be payee for the VA compensation.

If the VA determines his cannot handle his money, they will interview you to make sure that you are capable of doing that.

Have you ever asked a service officer in his behalf these questions? Possibly someone from the DAV or the AL would be able to advise you on how to go about this with the VA.

There are many ALzheimer sites on the web and I noticed that fiduciary questions come up from time to time at these sites. This too could be a help-and maybe even googling the Alzheimer's Foundation itself.

Edited October 5, 2008 by Berta

[Julopop]

If the VA declares him unable to handle his funds or 'incompetent' for VA purposes- they might well make you his VA comp payee- even with any SSA money he receives too-but the SSA could advise you on that.

I have never heard of doing it this way-asking the VA to make this type of determination-they usually do it themselves during some claims processes- but I would think you could write to the VA and ask them about this.

It would most likely involve a C & P exam- what is he SCed for? do you feel he should be rated higher? now is the time to claim a higher rating too.

I hope he has a Health Care Proxy-

and I suggest that if there are other assets involved as well as liabilities that you seek an attorney's advice.

My neighbor, a WWII vet has been recently diagnosed with Alzheimers and these questions are coming up in the family-

he has a fairly new car he can no longer drive and a large farm, SSA retirement and also a large pension from his former job.

He still is capable of doing many things- but the future will change that.

States also have specific fiduciary laws I think-

unless you are only seeking to be payee for the VA compensation.

If the VA determines his cannot handle his money, they will interview you to make sure that you are capable of doing that.

Have you ever asked a service officer in his behalf these questions? Possibly someone from the DAV or the AL would be able to advise you on how to go about this with the VA.

There are many ALzheimer sites on the web and I noticed that fiduciary questions come up from time to time at these sites. This too could be a help-and maybe even googling the Alzheimer's Foundation itself.

[Julopop]

Hi Berta and thank you so much for your reply. Yes, I am familiar with the many Alzheimers support websites - and my mother and I have joined a support group in Brooklyn, New York as well. Also, we've consulted with an elder care attorney regarding the house and my fathers assets. Lucky for us, we found someone who was very very skilled and also lucky for us - we contacted him immediatly when we discovered that Daddy was acting unusually. We were able to get him medication very early on, which is probably the reason why the progression of the disease has been so slow. It was 9-11 when we first realized something was wrong and he was diagnosed by Nov. 2001. Anyway, Daddy is rated 10% service connecting for hearing loss, he also receives SSA - but that check goes directly to the bank so we have no concern with that. Actually, the ONLY reason we are thinking of doing this fiduciary thing with the VA is because of how much we have heard about how it is frequently a 'stall' technique or at the very least it adds more time to the A&A approval process. Also, Berta - no I don't think he should be rated higher than 10%, and I don't recall receiving any information during the claim process. (Daddy was receiving this check since 1945 honorable discharge - but the checks stopped because he was throwing away the mail apparently and did not show up for an examination several years ago). With a great deal of work I was able to get his check re-instated about 5 years ago. Yes, he has a Health Care Proxy - it's me. I am only seeking to be the fiduciary for VA payments, and at the moment those payments are only his monthly SC check. And I appreciate your advice regarding contacting a service officer from DAV. Again, I appreciate your response so much Berta - I was so glad it was you that responded! Best Regards, Julia