Help for Father-in-Law

[texasvet]

 

Hello All,

My 91-year-old father-in-law is getting weaker by the day with all kinds of medical problems from COPD to bladder cancer to just being old.

I’m pretty certain that he told me years ago that he is 40% compensated for hearing loss due to his 20+ year career spent as a jet engine mechanic in the Air Force. 

His 81-year-old wife, that he’s been married to for 60+ years, is in the middle stages of Alzheimer’s and I’m going to make an effort to see if I can get him to sit down with me and go over his VA benefits and his finances and see if he has a will with an executor assigned.

I’ve got a number of questions and I’m sure more will come up as the months pass by. 

Here goes:

1.  Since he has Tri-Care how are his wife’s health benefits affected when he passes?

2.  Will Tri-Care pay any benefits if she moves into a 24/7 Alzheimer’s care facility.  

3. Will Tri-Care pay for any Alzheimer care facility costs?

4. She gets a few hundred dollars a month from Social Security and since her husband gets a bigger Social Security check, will she be entitled to part of it?

5. Will her or his Social Security pay any additional for Alzheimer’s care?

6. Since he has had his VA rating for over 10 years, will she be able to collect any DIC monthly benefit when he dies?

7. At this point, I don’t know if either one of them has Medicare insurance.  If they do, does that help or if they don’t, does that help?

Again, I’m going to try and meet with him in the next month or so and start formulating a game plan because when I saw him a few days ago, he told me he did not know what was going to happen to his wife should he die first.  

I’d like to get some thing in the works to ease his mind. He has enough to worry about.

Thanks,

Texasvet

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[broncovet]

VA benenefits/health insurance/ and social security is "just one" of many issues that should be discussed for estate planning.  They are important, but other issues may be just as important.  

I agree with the others that "hearing loss" is "unlikely" to cause death, but it is possible.  There are 2 basic ways of getting DIC:

1.  The Veteran can die of a Service connected conditon.  Again, this is unlikely "if" his only sc condition is hearing loss.  But you may ask him that.  Better, however, is to ask him "where are your VA papers", (he may know that) and read it.  This is far more reliable than asking a 90 something year old to know/remember SC conditions.  

2.  His spouse can get DIC also if he dies "for any reason" IF he dies 10 years or more after he is rated 100 percent P and T.  

As of now, based on your post, she wont qualify for DIC, but we cant be sure of the real deal until/unless we read it.  

     He probably needs to sit down with a (QUALIFIED) ESTATE PLANNER, PERHAPS ALSO WITH YOU.  

     He may be (more willing) to do this if you ask him a simple question:

     

Quote

Mr. Jones, are you interested in seeing to it that your family is provided for, in the event of your death, or are you ok with uncle sam and the lawyers getting most of it?  

If he responds, "Yes, I want to provide for my family", then I suggest you do your homework and pre screen an estate planner to sit down and discuss these issues with him.  Then you can respond:

Quote

Good.  I thought you may say that.  (Since you just went through that), you know a good estate planner who is willing to discuss with you how to maximize your family benefits, while minimizing taxes and lawyer fees.  He said he could come by next week.  Is monday good for you or do you have doctor appointments then?  

 

[broncovet]

Laws are complex and ever changing.  That is why you want someone who specializes in this and keeps up with it.  Someone you trust and he trusts.  

 

[texasvet]

Thanks Berta,

I sure hope that my Father-in-Law is willing to open up to me.  Like I said, he is a very private person.  
 

Texasvet

[texasvet]

Hi All,

my wife just told me that her 91 year old father was indeed stationed in Korea for a year.  
 

Are there any presumptive diseases that are associated with time served in Korea?

 

As I said my OP, my father-in-law has bladder cancer & COPD.  

Thanks,

Texasvet

[GBArmy]

What branch of service, when was he in country, did he serve in DMZ,what was his MOS? What does he have for medical disabilities?

[Berta]

"Veterans who served in a unit in or near the Korean demilitarized zone (DMZ) anytime between September 1, 1967 and August 31, 1971 are presumed to have been exposed to herbicides. These Veterans do not have to show they were exposed to Agent Orange to be eligible for disability compensation for these diseases.

 

VA and the Department of Defense must determine that the Veteran’s unit operated in the DMZ area and the Veteran was physically there."

 

https://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/agentorange/locations/korea.asp

 

"DoD and VA have recognized the following units as eligible for the presumption of herbicide exposure:

• Combat Brigade of the 2^nd Infantry Division. 1^st Battalion, 38^th Infantry. ...
• Division Reaction Force. 4^th Squadron, 7^th Cavalry, Counter Agent Company.
• 3^rd Brigade of the 7^th Infantry Division. ...
• Other Qualifying Assignments."

Apr 25, 2019

 

These are the three new presumptives:

 

"Senate Approves New Agent Orange PresumptiveDiseases, Tees Up House Showdown. The Senate overwhelmingly approved an addition to its defense policy bill to expand the Department of Veterans Affairs' list of diseases considered related to exposure to Agent Orange, adding bladder cancer, hypothyroidism and Parkinsonism."

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2020/07/22/senate-approves-new-agent-orange-presumptive-diseases-tees-house-showdown.html

gent Orange Exposure in Korea | CCK Law

"

https://cck-law.com/blog/agent-orange-exposure-in-korea/

 

Did he serve in Vietnam or Thailand as well? Vets have proven their exposure to AO in many places to include CONUS.

His DD214 would reveal ,hopefuly, when and where he served.

His Retiree records would also help.

 

And at some point the SBP program came into play , whereby a retiree could allot money from their military retirement check, to establish an annuity for their spouse when they passed away.

It would be great if he could start talking about his service because I am sure he has Adult children as well as grandchildren who should know all about his service and sacrifice to our nation.

 

I also hope he would let you have a copy of his DD 214 so that you can file a DD 149 ( form link is here at hadit) to make sure all of his citations, decorations are on it.

 

Also I think TRICARE could help -I will try to find out more on that-

 

COPD is not presumptive to AO- did he ever work around asbestos in the Military?

COPD claims can become very difficult to succeed in.

Bladder Cancer however is a new AO presumptive.

 

 

 

 

 

 

These are the AO presumptives:

https://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/agentorange/conditions/index.asp

 

 

This list however does not include the most recent presumptives: