Follow
Share

I have been taking care of her for 6 years. Would I be eligible for caregiver pay from the VA?

This question has been closed for answers. Ask a New Question.
chiatt60, glad to help. Kudos to you for taking care of your mother for so long. Below is a link to an Aging Care article about PCAs, including a link to a sample PCA.
https://www.agingcare.com/articles/personal-care-agreements-compensate-family-caregivers-181562.htm
It might be a good idea to review a draft of your PCA with your state's Veterans Affairs Office before you present it to the federal Veterans Administration. Maybe also review the draft with your state's Medicaid office if a future Medicaid application seems at all likely. Best wishes.
Helpful Answer (0)
Report

chiatt60, your mother can use her VA pension (or any other income or assets) to pay you for providing her care. If such care is certified as necessary by her physician and is provided via a Personal Care Agreement (PCA) at a reasonable hourly rate, then her VA pension, if not already at the maximum amount, may be increased because necessary medical/care costs are deductible from income in the VA's pension formula. I believe she has to actually pay a caregiver before the cost can be used to increase the pension. While the VA pension is not taxable to her, caregiving payments to you from her are taxable. When writing a PCA, you should make it compliant with your state's Medicaid rules to ensure that your mother's payments to you will not be viewed as gifts so she will not have a Medicaid financial "look back penalty" should she need such assistance in the future.
Helpful Answer (0)
Report

This question has been closed for answers. Ask a New Question.
Ask a Question
Subscribe to
Our Newsletter