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My mom has been drawing my dad's SSA and his VA Dependency and Indemnity Compensation the SSA is $1500 the VACP is $2120.36. I am trying to get her placed in a Nursing Home as I can't care for her at home anymore she is in ICU right now but they are moving her to Nursing Home for Skilled Rehab. Not sure how long she will stay on that but then want her to go on Long Term Care. Some are saying she makes to much also we live in Oklahoma. Can't I just cancel her VACP then she qualifies?

is there a private care home in your city that will take her for the $3600. Per month she has plus hospice support and services? It might be worth asking the social worker to help you find this. She can go to a local NH with hospice benefit for 5 days per month for Respite care and hospice covers all the transport back and forth. So private care home really is providing custodial care with hospice support for 25 days a month. Just a suggestion to make it easier on you.
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Reply to Beethoven13
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What is happening is mom is in a State that has $2,901.00 income max. Which most States do.

What will have to happen for being over resourced on income is 1 of those incomes will change so that she technically will no longer be the “owner”. Just how it can happen depends on what her States laws allow. Some allow for a QIT, or a Miller Trust, or do a “pooled income”. It is on you as the PoA to deal with this & find out just what’s what for your State. And that means elder law atty with LTC Medicaid expertise by & large.

So let’s say mom’s State allows for Miller. So what can happen is her SSA of $1500 as it is a completely guaranteed income source, it can go into the Miller. So now the Miller Trust owns it. Voila! Mom now only has that $2126.30 of other income, so she’s is under the $2901 max. Happiness all around!

How Miller runs is totally State dependent. Some have it easy peasy paperwork and have precise banks that are the only ones who do Miller accounts. (fwiw these banks will probably also be the only banks that do ABLE accounts). And other States for their Miller will need for an elder law attorney to shepherd the process. And for more fun some States do NOT allow for Miller at all.

Mom cannot do a disclaimer / refusal to be paid that VA $. Medicaid is pretty strict on stuff like this. It actually happens often as elder ends up being a beneficiary in the will of an equally elderly sibling or ex-spouse…. they cannot refuse it.

VA stuff is really not my wheelhouse. However, I’m remembering, that for the VA aid & attendance system, the payments will stop if they enter a long term custodial care facility and file for LTC Medicaid. VA will switch it to a $90 a mo stipend & it did not count as income for LTC Medicaid. Try to find out if this will happen for the VA Dependency like it did for Aid & Attendance. For the switch from A&A to the stipend seemed to take a good period of time, then suddenly in 1 day VA would clawback each mo paid for that period and then do a retro $90 for those same months. The LTC Medicaid casework kinda ignores the VA A&A $ for the application processing.

!!!To me what is super important is to find out exactly IF THIS IS WHAT that DEPENDENTCY does!!! If this is what that Dependency will be doing, no need for a Miller etc. Please remember DO NOT SPEND THE $ as it will eventually clawback.

Realize that her rehabilitation stay is covered by her health insurance. So every day she is in rehab gives you another day to figure all this out. You want her to do rehab as long as possible. If she gets all “not today, I hurt” she will be discharged from rehab quickly. If you need to be a cheerleader for her to be motivated, do it. Most rehab is 21-28 days. That is your window of time to get a plan in place, get whatever paperwork needed to get her LTC medicaid eligible, do or refresh her legal, do a spend down on assets if need be, so that she can go from being a rehab patient on health insurance to becoming a custodial care resident on LTC Medicaid.
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Soldier4Christ Jan 8, 2026
So they refused her for Skilled Rehab she is on Hospice they are doing comfort meds only morphine and oxygen. Hospice is paying for 5 days respite after she was transferred to Nursing Home. I am just paying out of pocket another 1,400 for another 5 days to figure out what to do. I cant care for her here at home I am 62 and sole caregiver been doing it for almost year and half. I think they do have that Miller's Trust it says on the paper Medicaid Income Pension Trust. Also I do not have POA she just went into ER Jan 1st for Pulmonary Embolism was gonna get the POA then this happened. I have dropped the ball on that one. One lady amd nursing home said she might only have 7-10 days. But I know God is in control of our Death. The Dr. was trying to get her skilled so that would of given me 3 months free to get things situated but nursing home refused her said she would not qualify for Skilled so just accepted her for Respite then I am trying to get her approved for Long Term. I was gonna go talk to VSO today. Also she has no assests she lived with me. I am on her checking account so I was just getting money out of our joint checking acct and paying for all the care rent etc. Any information is so greatly appreciated. Thank you so much...
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I would contact your County VA dept with how this will work. Here is what I found on the internet.

"VA Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) provides tax-free monthly payments to survivors (spouses, children, parents) of deceased service members or veterans whose death was service-connected, and it can work with long-term care Medicaid; DIC itself isn't income-based, but it counts as income, so you'll need to manage assets to qualify for Medicaid, potentially using VA benefits to pay for care (like Aid & Attendance) while qualifying for Medicaid for other needs, often requiring specialized elder law help to coordinate."
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The VA benefits aren't taken into consideration when applying for Medicaid, they go away. So only her SS is counted as income which would qualify mom for long term care benefits under Medicaid. Please see an Elder Care attorney versed in Medicaid who can guide you through this process, or like Grandma said, speak to the Social Worker or a VA representative.

Best of luck to you.
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Reply to lealonnie1
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Soldier4Christ Jan 7, 2026
Thats what I was thinking the SS is my dad's also she never worked full time. So she should qualify.
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This won't be Do-it-YOURSELF territory. You are going to need an attorney. If mom is getting VA benefits AND her own Social Security she may well fall over the line for any financial help while still not having enough for her care facility. You need to contact the Social Worker and Discharge planner at rehab on DAY ONE, first of all, and let them know that she is going to need permanent placement from their facility into care. They can get to work fast then. OTHERWISE all that "find a place" will be on YOU.

Moreover, if her monthly assets are too high (and they will know exactly) then you need an attorney to help you do a QIT Trust or Miller Trust to get some of her funds, either SS or VA put into a Trust, effectively lowering her income so she qualifies for help. That Trust money WILL BE used when she passes in order for the government to be compensated for her care they provided funds to. So the beneficiary of said trust isn't her family heirs, but the entity that paid for some of her care.

This is, as you can imagine, legally complicated help you require. We are just a mess of caregivers from all the states and even from around the world. We are working on our own financial problems with the same expert help.

Sure do wish you best of luck but ACCESS the SOCIAL WORKERS/Discharge planners. They have the information and help and access you need. Be the squeaky wheel at their door way every day until you get the help you need. And ask about good financial help.

You may ALSO have access to Social Worker through VA, but I don't honestly have a clue. Can only wish you best, and hope you will update on how it goes, what works and who is the most help to you.
We learn, here, from one another.
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Reply to AlvaDeer
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Please talk to a Social Worker at the hospital or at the rehab. Ask for one that has knowledge of the VA system
or
Call the VA and ask to talk to a Social Worker there or possibly a Patient Advocate.
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Reply to Grandma1954
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