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My husband was in the Army for a short time before we were married but got an honorable discharge because he was employed for "critical skills". He then was in the reserves for a while. I have no documentations anywhere. This was around 1960. I have been told to check if he has any VA benefits. He is now in memory care at $6000/ month, no long term insurance. It would be wonderful if I could get some aid, but I doubt if I can wondering if I could try with no papers and such a short time of being enlisted. My feeling is no, but wondering about opinions from anyone here. There was no active duty here and no war at the time. Just had to explore as the costs are astronomical and don't know how long funds will last.

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You have no paper to show your husband was in the service, but the government should. So, you should contact the VA as you were advised.
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My advice to you is to download a form called: SF-180 from archives.gov. When you fill it out initially you ONLY want to request your husbands DD-214. That is a discharge form issued to all veterans upon exit of service to prove that they served in the military. The reason I say only ask for the DD-214 first and no other records is because the DD-214 is what you need to get things going and it takes forever if you request all records (like 6mos to a year or so). The DD-214 will usually get to you in a month’s time. After you get the DD-214 I would suggest going to see a Veterans Service Officer who can help you file and navigate the VA disability process. Let the service officer know that your husband is not yet signed up for VA healthcare. If you live near a VA hospital you can go in and register him for VA healthcare. You will need to bring the DD-214 to both places and I would suggest making copies of your husbands DD-214. Also after you receive his DD-214 fill out another SF-180 and ask for EVERYTHING in his file especially a copy of his service medical records, you want all records that way you can go through them to see if he had any health problems while he was in service that got worse over time that he can get disability for. Depending on if he qualifies at a certain percent that may bring some monies in. And if you at least have the DD214 he may be eligible for placement in a state Veterans Home at a much lower monthly rate or for free. Good luck to you in this endeavor and God Bless.
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He may also qualify for Veteran's Aid and Attendance benefits. There are income and net work threshholds. I believe your local VA office can help you with that, but you can google it and find a bit of info online.
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Any wartime veteran with 90 days of active duty, 1 day beginning or ending during a period of war, is eligible to apply for the Aid & Attendance Improved Pension.

If he has a shorter duty than that, he won’t qualify for fiancial help, but he still may be eligible for other veteran benefits.
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EmmaSue provided you with the right information. Definitely start there by contacting the VA or requesting his DD-214 from va.gov . If he was enlisted (not necessarily active) during the Vietnam War era (1955-1975) he may qualify for additional benefits that will supplement the cost of the memory care facility and the services they provide. And definitely find a VA support center to help, as EmmaSue mentioned. They are of great benefit to help navigate through paperwork. Praying you get all the help and guidance you need to get through this.
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