The Veterans Asset Protection Trust can be a beneficial option for many of your elder law clients that are looking for long-term planning options. The Veterans Asset Protection Trust is an intentionally defective grantor trust and can be considered as an option for clients who are wartime Veterans or the surviving spouses of a wartime Veteran. This trust is designed to meet the eligibility requirements from the Veterans Administration (VA) of a complete gift or complete relinquishment.  

When it comes to assets, the most significant for Veterans is typically his or her residence. As long as a Veteran retains that home, it does not count as part of his or her net worth for VA-eligibility purposes and instead qualifies as a “non-countable resource.” If a Veteran is collecting a monthly pension benefit, however, and later sells the home, those proceeds will disqualify him or her from receiving any further Veterans’ pension benefits. This disqualification remains intact until the Veteran spends the proceeds down to an allowable asset level.

Thank you to our guest blogger Seth Kuntz for breaking down the pros and cons of private Veterans’ healthcare

There is a contentious debate among politicians, Veterans’ advocacy groups, and Veterans themselves over what changes need to be made to take better care of our Veterans’ health, and if the Veterans’ healthcare system should be privatized. Our goal is to help simplify this complex topic for you and your clients.

I always hear the term “privatization of Veterans’ healthcare,” but what does that actually mean?

Currently, Veterans may receive care at a government-run healthcare facility, either for free or a minimal cost. Veterans also have the option to receive care at a private facility through the Veterans Choice Program if long wait times are present or if the nearest VA facility is too far away. Not all Veterans are eligible for the Choice Program.

Thankfully, a VA Pension claim does not die with the claimant…for the most part.  The VA has finally published a final rule on the concept of “Substitution” which allows an eligible surviving family member to stand in the shoes of the deceased claimant and finish a pending claim. The rule has been in the United States Code for several years, but regulations had not yet been passed. See 38 U.S.C. §5121A.
 
When formally published in the Code of Federal Regulations the Substitution regulations will be located at 38 CFR §3.1010.  The final rule has an effective date of October 6, 2014.