ReleaseWire

Home Care Assistance Supports Veterans and Offers Aid & Attendance Benefit Pension

Veterans who qualify and are in need of home care can use the pension to help pay for services

Posted: Friday, November 12, 2010 at 10:46 AM CST

Palo Alto, CA -- (SBWire) -- 11/12/2010 -- Home Care Assistance, a leading international provider of non-medical, in-home senior care, is offering an Aide & Attendance Benefit Pension Program to veterans who qualify to help pay for home care services. Since the Aide & Attendance pension is not advertised, many veterans and their spouses are unaware that it even exists. In fact, it is estimated that 2 million veterans and their spouses are missing out on this pension.

"Our veterans have done so much for our country so we want to give back in any way we can,” said Lily Sarafan, COO of Home Care Assistance. “The Aid & Attendance pension helps to supplement the cost of in-home care for qualified veterans, which relieves the financial burden tremendously.”

There are a number of requirements to qualify for the pension, but below are the six major ones needed for veterans to be eligible:

• Served in the military one day during wartime. (Not required to be in battle, just serving during a war).
• Served 90 days or more in active service.
• Had an honorable discharge.
• Veteran or spouse must be 60% or more housebound. This must be certified by an MD.
• Medical expenses must exceed income by 5%.
• Care must begin before the pension is paid.

As veterans age, many will require some type of care. According to a recent national family caregiving study, 17 percent of caregivers provide care for a veteran and 11 percent have served in the armed forces themselves. As a result of the physical and psychological trauma that many veterans previously experienced, they are more likely to suffer from depression and other disorders. Seventy percent of caregivers reported that the veteran they care for experiences depression or anxiety, and 60 percent reported post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), compared to only 28 percent of caregivers nationally whose care recipients suffer from mental or emotional health problems.

For more information about Home Care Assistance and the Aide & Attendance pension available to veterans, please call (866) 454-8346 or visit us online at http://www.homecareassistance.com.

ABOUT HOME CARE ASSISTANCE
Home Care Assistance, founded in 2002, is a leading international provider of non-medical, in-home senior care with franchises throughout North America. Serving as a comprehensive alternative to a nursing home or assisted living facility for older adults, our mission is to provide the highest quality and most reliable in-home care services. Home Care Assistance successfully operates as North America's preferred brand for in-home care, maintaining an intimate and personal rapport with each client. Here at Home Care Assistance we are dedicated to finding the highest caliber caregivers who we expertly match with the right recipient based on his or her needs. In addition, we do not require long-term contracts for services and remain on-call 24 hours a day. For more information, please contact Home Care Assistance at 1-866-4-LIVE-IN, or visit online at: http://www.homecareassistance.com.