Benefits for Senior Veterans and Their Families

Who can enroll

Most veterans who served on active duty qualify. If you enlisted after September 7, 1980, you generally need 24 months of service, unless you were discharged early for a disability or hardship.² Since March 5, 2024, the PACT Act also lets every veteran exposed to toxins or other hazards enroll directly.⁴ That includes many Vietnam-era, Gulf War, and post-9/11 veterans. See VA's eligibility rules and PACT Act guide.

Priority groups

VA places everyone who enrolls in one of eight priority groups. Group 1 pays no copays, and veterans rated 10% or higher pay none for inpatient or outpatient care.³

1. Service-connected rating of 50% or more, unable to work because of a service-connected condition, or Medal of Honor

2. Service-connected rating of 30% or 40%

3. Former prisoner of war, Purple Heart, discharged for a disability from service, or rated 10% or 20%

4. Receiving pension with Aid and Attendance or Housebound, or catastrophically disabled

5. Income below VA's limit for your area, receiving VA pension, or eligible for Medicaid

6. World War II, Gulf War, or Camp Lejeune service; toxic exposure; or post-9/11 combat

7. Income below your area's limit, and you agree to copays

8. Income above VA's limits, and you agree to copays

VA care and Medicare

You can have both, and VA recommends it: VA care may change with funding, and Medicare Part B's late-enrollment penalty lasts for life. See VA health care and other insurance.

VA health care covers

Care at VA medical centers and clinics, and outside care VA approves

Medicare covers

Care from non-VA doctors and hospitals you choose, like a nearby emergency room

How to enroll

Apply with VA Form 10-10EZ. Most people get a decision in about a week.

Online

VA.gov health care application

By phone

1-877-222-8387, Monday–Friday, 8 a.m.–8 p.m. ET

In person

At any VA medical center or clinic

Your options

What it costs, and what's changing

VA charges copays for most long-term care, based on income and the level of care.⁵ Veterans with a high service-connected rating often pay nothing. The Elizabeth Dole Act, signed in January 2025, requires VA to offer home aides and Veteran-Directed Care at every medical center and starts a small pilot that pays for assisted living. See VA copay rates.

Find a State Veterans Home

There are about 172 State Veterans Homes.⁷ Each state sets its own admission rules and prices, and many accept spouses. Call the home to ask about openings.

8 homes in California

• Veterans Home of California - Barstow

  100 East Veterans Parkway, Barstow, CA 92311

  Skilled nursing, Domiciliary, Assisted living; Medicare rating 5 of 5; Spouses admitted

  (760) 252-6200

• Veterans Home of California - Chula Vista

  700 East Naples Court, Chula Vista, CA 91911

  Skilled nursing, Domiciliary, Assisted living; Medicare rating 5 of 5; Spouses admitted

  (619) 482-6010

• Veterans Home of California - Fresno

  2811 West Cesar Chavez Boulevard, Fresno, CA 93706

  Skilled nursing, Assisted living, Memory care; Medicare rating 5 of 5; Spouses admitted

  (559) 493-4400

• William J. "Pete" Knight Veterans Home of California - Lancaster

  45221 30th Street West, Lancaster, CA 93536

  Assisted living; Spouses admitted

  (661) 974-8141

• Veterans Home of California - West Los Angeles

  11500 Nimitz Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90049

  Skilled nursing, Assisted living; Medicare rating 4 of 5; Spouses admitted

  (424) 832-8200

• Veterans Home of California - Redding

  3400 Knighton Road, Redding, CA 96002

  Skilled nursing, Assisted living; Medicare rating 5 of 5; Spouses admitted

  (530) 224-3300

• Veterans Home of California - Ventura

  10900 Telephone Road, Ventura, CA 93004

  Assisted living; Spouses admitted

  (805) 659-7500

• Veterans Home of California - Yountville

  100 California Drive, Yountville, CA 94599

  Skilled nursing, Domiciliary, Assisted living, Memory care; Medicare rating 4 of 5; Spouses admitted

  (707) 944-4500

Source: the National Association of State Veterans Homes and state veterans agencies. Medicare ratings from CMS apply to nursing care only.

Who qualifies

You must meet all three rules. Combat service is not required.⁸

Wartime service

At least 90 days of active duty with 1 day in a wartime period. If you entered after September 7, 1980, generally 24 months.

Age or disability

65 or older, or permanently disabled, in a nursing home, or receiving Social Security disability or SSI.

Income and assets

Income below the pension rate after care costs are subtracted, and net worth of $163,699 or less.⁹

Wartime periods

Aid and Attendance and Housebound

These add-ons raise the pension for veterans who need more care. You can get one, not both. Apply with VA Form 21-2680, which your doctor fills out.

Aid and Attendance

You need help with daily tasks like bathing or dressing, are mostly bedridden, live in a nursing home, or have very limited eyesight.

Housebound

You spend most of your time at home because of a permanent disability.

Estimate the pension

VA pays the maximum rate minus the income it counts. Care and medical costs you pay yourself lower that income.

Maximum yearly rates

The most VA pays in a year, before subtracting the income it counts.

Before you move any money

VA reviews assets given away or sold for less than they were worth in the 36 months before you apply. If a transfer brought your net worth under the limit, VA can deny the pension for up to 5 years. Putting savings into a trust or annuity to qualify can trigger the same penalty and hurt Medicaid eligibility later. Anyone who suggests it is a warning sign.

How to apply

1. Gather papers: discharge papers, Social Security numbers, income and asset details, and records of care costs you pay.

2. File an intent to file to lock in your start date while you finish.

3. Apply with VA Form 21P-527EZ, adding Form 21-2680 for Aid and Attendance. A free accredited representative can help.

4. Track your claim at VA.gov or at 1-800-827-1000.

How it works

VA rates each service-connected condition from 0% to 100% and combines them into one rating, which sets your payment and raises your health care priority. For many conditions below, VA presumes the link to service, so you don't have to prove it. File with VA Form 21-526EZ at VA.gov or with a free accredited representative.

Monthly pay for a veteran with no dependents

• 10%$180.42
• 20%$356.66
• 30%$552.47
• 40%$795.84
• 50%$1,132.90
• 60%$1,435.02
• 70%$1,808.45
• 80%$2,102.15
• 90%$2,362.30
• 100%$3,938.58

Figure 3. Monthly disability pay for a veteran with no dependents, by rating, effective December 1, 2025. Dependents raise the amount at 30% and above.¹¹

Agent Orange

VA presumes these conditions were caused by service for veterans exposed to Agent Orange. The PACT Act added high blood pressure and MGUS.¹²

• Bladder cancer
• Chronic B-cell leukemia
• Hodgkin's disease
• Multiple myeloma
• Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma
• Prostate cancer
• Respiratory cancers
• Some soft tissue sarcomas
• AL amyloidosis
• Chloracne
• Type 2 diabetes
• High blood pressure
• Hypothyroidism
• Ischemic heart disease
• MGUS
• Parkinson's disease and parkinsonism
• Early-onset peripheral neuropathy
• Porphyria cutanea tarda

Burn pits and other toxins

For Gulf War and post-9/11 veterans, the PACT Act added the conditions below. It applies to service on or after August 2, 1990, in Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, or the United Arab Emirates, and on or after September 11, 2001, in Afghanistan, Djibouti, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Uzbekistan, or Yemen.¹³

Cancers

• Brain cancer and glioblastoma
• Head and neck cancers
• Gastrointestinal cancers
• Pancreatic cancer
• Kidney and other genitourinary cancers
• Lymphatic cancers and lymphoma
• Melanoma
• Reproductive cancers
• Respiratory cancers

Breathing illnesses

• Asthma diagnosed after service
• Chronic bronchitis
• COPD
• Emphysema
• Chronic rhinitis and sinusitis
• Constrictive bronchiolitis
• Interstitial lung disease
• Pulmonary fibrosis
• Sarcoidosis
• Pleuritis
• Granulomatous disease

What a surviving spouse may receive

Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC)

$1,699.36 a month if the veteran died of a service-connected condition or was rated totally disabled for a set time. Add $360.85 if that rating lasted the final 8 years of your marriage, and $421 if you need Aid and Attendance. No income limit.¹⁴ DIC rules

Survivors Pension

For the unremarried spouse of a wartime veteran, whatever the cause of death. The same $163,699 net worth limit applies, and care costs lower countable income.¹⁵ See the yearly rates. Survivors Pension rules

CHAMPVA

Health coverage when the veteran was rated permanently and totally disabled or died of a service-connected condition. At 65 you need Medicare Parts A and B to keep it. About CHAMPVA

TRICARE For Life

For military retirees, their spouses, and some survivors; pays after Medicare Parts A and B. About TRICARE For Life

Burial

A spouse can be buried with the veteran in a national cemetery, even if the spouse dies first or remarries. Burial benefits

Programs for caregivers

General Caregiver Support

For caregivers of any enrolled veteran, with no application: training, coaching, peer mentors, support groups, and phone support. Learn more

Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers

When the veteran is rated 70% or higher and needs at least 6 months of in-person care, the main caregiver may get a monthly stipend, CHAMPVA coverage, respite, and training.¹⁶ VA proposed rule changes in December 2024 that were not final as of this review. Eligibility

Respite care

Care at home, at adult day health care, or in a nursing home so you can rest. At home, each visit of up to 6 hours counts as one day.

Veteran-Directed Care

The veteran can use a VA budget to pay family members or neighbors for care.

Caregiver Support Line

1-855-260-3274, Monday–Friday, 8 a.m.–8 p.m. ET

Military funeral honors

Ask the funeral director to request honors; allow at least 48 hours. By law, at least two uniformed members attend, one from the veteran's branch. Honors are always free, so anyone asking for payment is running a scam.

Taps is played by a bugler, or by a ceremonial bugle or recording. The flag is folded 13 times into a triangle with only the stars showing, then presented to the next of kin with these words:

Burial in a VA national cemetery

Burial is free and includes the gravesite, opening and closing the grave, a liner, a headstone or marker, and care of the grave forever. Veterans who were not dishonorably discharged qualify, as do spouses (even if they die first or remarry) and some dependent children. See who is eligible.

Memorial items

• Headstone or marker

  For a veteran's unmarked grave in any cemetery; spouses only in national, state, tribal, or military cemeteries.

  VA Form 40-1330

• Bronze medallion

  Instead of a headstone, for a privately marked grave (deaths on or after Nov 1, 1990).

  VA Form 40-1330M

• Presidential Memorial Certificate

  A certificate signed by the president; family and close friends can request one.

  VA Form 40-0247

• Burial flag

  From the funeral home, a VA office, or a U.S. post office.

  VA Form 27-2008

Burial allowance

For a death on or after October 1, 2025, VA may pay toward funeral costs:

Death not related to service, burial

$1,002

Plus a plot or interment allowance

$1,002

Death related to service, up to

$2,000

File within 2 years of burial when the death was not related to service.¹⁸

Plan ahead

File VA Form 40-10007 for a pre-need eligibility decision. It doesn't reserve a plot, but it makes arrangements faster. Keep the letter with your will and discharge papers.

Six steps

1. Find your discharge papers. Almost every benefit starts with your DD214. If it's lost, request a free copy from the National Archives with eVetRecs or Standard Form 180; it can take weeks.

2. Enroll in VA health care. It opens the door to home care, nursing care, and caregiver support.

3. Get free help. A Veterans Service Organization or county veterans service officer can review your case and file for you.

4. File an intent to file. It locks in your start date for pension, disability, or survivor benefits while you gather papers.

5. Submit your application online, by mail, or at a VA regional office, and keep copies.

6. Track it and answer quickly. Check status at VA.gov and respond fast to any request.

The forms

VA health care

10-10EZ

Veterans Pension

21P-527EZ

Aid and Attendance or Housebound

21-2680

Disability compensation

21-526EZ

DIC and Survivors Pension

21P-534EZ

Pre-need burial eligibility

40-10007

Burial flag

27-2008

Papers to gather

Warning signs

A fee to file your first claim

It is against the law to charge you to prepare or file your first VA claim.

A plan to move your assets

Putting savings into a trust or annuity to qualify can trigger the look-back penalty and hurt Medicaid eligibility.

A “free seminar” at a senior community

Pension talks run by financial salespeople often end in a product pitch.

A promise of more money, faster

No one can guarantee what VA decides or speed up a claim for a fee.

A buyout of future benefits

Cash now in exchange for your monthly payments is a costly trap.

Help from someone not accredited

Only VA-accredited representatives, attorneys, and claims agents may help.

Check and report

Search VA's accredited representative directory. Report suspected fraud at 833-38V-SAFE or through VA's fraud prevention page.

Where to find help

Veterans Service Organizations

The American Legion, VFW, DAV, and others have accredited officers who file claims for free. Choosing a representative

State and county offices

Every state has a veterans affairs office, and many counties have a service officer. They also handle state benefits like property tax breaks. Find your state office

VA's guide for older veterans

Pension, health care, and long-term care links in one place. Elderly Veterans at VA

Phone numbers

VA benefits

1-800-827-1000Mon–Fri, 8 a.m.–9 p.m. ET

VA health care

1-877-222-8387Mon–Fri, 8 a.m.–8 p.m. ET

MyVA411 general help

1-800-698-241124 hours

Caregiver Support Line

1-855-260-3274Mon–Fri, 8 a.m.–8 p.m. ET

National Cemetery Scheduling

1-800-535-1117Mon–Fri, 8 a.m.–7:30 p.m. ET

Military OneSource

1-800-342-964724 hours

Veterans Crisis Line

988, then press 124 hours; or text 838255