DIC Entitlement?

[Buck52]

My cousins Dad passed away today  from his S.C. Disability   he is entitled to a military funeral  and the VA pays the expense to bury him  correct? what forms does she need to fil out and submit to who?

ok he was widower , but his daughter took Care of him until about 2 months Ago and she had put him in a Facility for Alzheimer and Parkinson care.

he was 100% S.C for diebetes but had a claim in for parkinson they had just got that (diebetes claim )last year as ms berta helped me with his claim..(.Vietnam veteran 67/68)  his daughter ask me about his entitlement to the claim they had in and also is she entitled to any DIC from her father? he has her as his beneficiary ?

I told her tonight I Was so sorry to hear of he fathers death  he was 72. but I had to check with some folks on some of these other questions..she just wants to know b/c her dad had mention this to her  when his time came.

Thia is the one that would not join hadit for,,,,> help I passed Ms berta information on to her.

[Berta]

"My cousins Dad passed away today  from his S.C. Disability   he is entitled to a military funeral  and the VA pays the expense to bury him  correct? what forms does she need to fill out and submit to who?'

Buck, I am so sorry to hear this news. My Pastor's daughter passed away December 21st-she was 29 years old, and I just heard another church member is very ill....

Military services depend on where he will be buried.

Two members of the USAF were at the last viewing my church had-and this vet was buried in a private cemetery.

My husband wanted to be buried at the National Cemetery in Bath NY, next to the VAMC he had worked at and where he was a patient.

If this vet is being buried  at a National Cemetery, they will give him Full Military Honors and the Gun Volley etc etc---

-the Color Guard lined the entrance to the VA Chapel where the services were held and the VA provided a VA bus to take us all up into their beautiful cemetery....a steep hill to climb....where the flag was presented to me.

Note this part:

"The DOD program calls for funeral home directors to request military funeral honors on behalf of the Veterans' family. However, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) National Cemetery Administration cemetery staff can also assist with arranging military funeral honors at VA national cemeteries. Veterans organizations may assist in providing military funeral honors. When military funeral honors at a national cemetery are desired, they are arranged prior to the committal service by the funeral home."

If he was a member of a major vet org, the family might want to contact them-if he is being buried at a National Cemetery-in my husband's case the funeral was put off for about three weeks, due to his best friend getting time off at work- and the American Legion called me as soon as they read his Obit-

The funeral director will help her with this as well.

The other questions----

Does the death certificate state his SC condition as the primary cause of death ( #1 on the certificate) or as a substantial contributing factor under # 2 on the certificate?

 

The answer to those questions will help me answer the other questions you have.

As I recall ( I might be wrong) his SC award was fairly new....? 

 

 

 

Military Funeral Honors

"Honoring Those Who Served"

The Department of Defense (DOD) is responsible for providing military funeral honors. "Honoring Those Who Served" is the title of the DOD program for providing dignified military funeral honors to Veterans who have defended our nation.

Upon the family's request, Public Law 106-65 requires that every eligible Veteran receive a military funeral honors ceremony, to include folding and presenting the United States burial flag and the playing of Taps. The law defines a military funeral honors detail as consisting of two or more uniformed military persons, with at least one being a member of the Veteran's parent service of the armed forces. The DOD program calls for funeral home directors to request military funeral honors on behalf of the Veterans' family. However, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) National Cemetery Administration cemetery staff can also assist with arranging military funeral honors at VA national cemeteries. Veterans organizations may assist in providing military funeral honors. When military funeral honors at a national cemetery are desired, they are arranged prior to the committal service by the funeral home.

The Department of Defense began the implementation plan for providing military funeral honors for eligible Veterans as enacted in Section 578 of Public Law 106-65 of the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2000 on Jan. 1, 2000.

Questions or comments concerning the DOD military funeral honors program may be sent to the address listed below. The military funeral honors Web site is located at https://mfh.dmdc.osd.mil/mfh/. [Link will take you off the VA web site.]"

https://www.cem.va.gov/military_funeral_honors.asp

 

[Berta]

 

 

This link holds the information as to DIC for any surviving spouse, parent or child-

under the Nehmer Court order.

https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/38/3.816

I only found one decision under Nehmer as to an adult child regarding DIC:

https://www.va.gov/vetapp16/Files4/1630166.txt

The claim was denied because the child was 26 years old- however the remand explains what evidence they needed to consider:

"Additional evidence received since the July 1999 decision includes a Report of Confidential Social Security Benefit Information dated in November 2011 which indicates that the appellant was entitled to receive her father's SSA benefits from November 1983 and that she received SSA benefits until June 1988."

It is not clear why the VA needed that info-perhaps she was disabled....???

However if there is no DIC potential -

the Estate of the veteran might bring a retroactive payment under Nehmer if she files to Substitute herself as the claimant on the pending Parkinson's claim, and if that claim succeeds.

The substitution form is here under a search.

The Funeral Director might well file the forms needed for any burial expense reimbursements-

Those benefits are explained here under a hadit search.

But that all depends too on what the death certificate states- we need to know the exact words under Cause of death #1, and # 2....and was an autopsy done?

If he died "intestate", meaning without a will, she might well have to contact the Surrogate's office in her County to see how to file for the Probate papers.

I needed to do that when my husband died.He just just revoked his past will, but we never contacted out lawyer for a new will, because , at 47 years old, we did not see that as a priority.

The surrogate here gave me a bunch of papers to "take to my lawyer" since there was no will, but I told her I am a pro se lawyer and she said 'oh, by all means, you can do this yourself', and it was not too difficult to do, but time consuming and this is what I had to provide to the Nehmer people when they handled my AO death claim for AO IHD.

When my other husband died, in a different state, different probate laws,  I was able to open an Estate account.

These things are difficult to deal with when one is grief stricken. 

Perhaps the 'facility' he was in could help with some of that-or advise her where to go for help-

Does she already hold his Power of Attorney?

The lawyer who handled that-if she does- would possibly help with probate.

 

  

[Berta]

Substitution form

https://www.va.gov/vaforms/form_detail.asp?FormNo=21P-0847

[Buck52]

Thank You Ms berta

I relay this information to her. 

she did say she was his beneficiary and she really needs help now because she took care of her Dad the last 4 years they lived off his SSA and retirement funds. he got his S.C. Claim in 2017 at 100%  they had files a parkinsons claim on the Nehamer ruling  its there has been no decison on that claim...they just filed it July 2018.  she does want to try to get DIC she has not  been in the work force in 4 years  to stay and take care of her Dad. I relayed all this information you put up  to her...she is in greif but she said she is also open for any information that would help her    her Dad had mention to her to check with the VA  after he passed and see if any thing the VA Can help with  he wanted her to check with me  as he knows I help veterans with their claims  but I told her I was not that familiar to DIC Claims...I wissh she would get on Hadit but she said it was to complicated site to use  she just did not understand how it worked  she said she tried for hours to get in the right forum on hadit but she gave up. she said if I can relay her the information she would be greatful and appreciate it very  very much.

[Berta]

Buck You could email her a link to this topic  here

https://community.hadit.com/topic/73447-dic-entitlement/

I think guests can get here with a hadit link- 

There is no DIC potential, in my opinion-

The only time an adult would qualify for DIC is if they were what VA calls a "helpless child" and that means they would have to have a total disability per the SSA prior to age 18 ,that could certainly continue until they are an adult and thus VA would consider them as an adult helpless child, if they were eligible for DIC due to direct SC death of their parent, with no other parent living.

I feel she should get a Vet rep's help  with the pending claim.

Not only does SSA and his retirement source have to be notified of his death, but VA has to know as well-

I think our checks are coming into our bank accounts maybe Friday? Or Sat? because I think maybe VA will be closed on Monday as well as the !st (2019)   ..not sure.

 

 

[Buck52]

Ms bera she is 31  she started taking care of him when she was 27..she gave up her Home and job to take care of her  disabled veteran father as he could not take care of himself,  obviously her father never filed a claim until he had talk to some veterans at the Dallas VAMC...THAT WAS 2017  they used the DAV and he was awarded 100% on his first claim  they didn't know about the A&A i Was going to help her with that but now this happen.

she is single and no hubby or children.