Talking about end-of-life planning is never easy, but it’s essential. VA provides a variety of benefits and services to help Veterans and their loved ones prepare. From life insurance to burial costs, learn how you can plan ahead with VA benefits.
Provide financial protection
VA offers life insurance to help Veterans prepare for the future and protect those who matter most. Veterans Affairs Life Insurance (VALife) offers guaranteed acceptance whole life coverage up to $40,000 for Veterans with service-connected disabilities. With Veterans’ Group Life Insurance (VGLI), you can convert and keep your Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance (SGLI) coverage amount after you leave the military. Learn about the two programs and find the right coverage for you.
Prepare vital documents
In the event you’re not able to make your end-of-life care wishes known, it’s important to have them written down so someone else can represent them on your behalf. To help with this, VA offers Advance Care Planning (ACP), in which a Veteran can clarify their preferences for future health care based on personal values and beliefs. As part of ACP, you can also nominate an individual to advocate for your care preferences and make decisions on your behalf, if you’re unable to do so.
Get started on your plans for the future with help from VA. You can talk to your primary care team member to determine what your first step should be, meet with a social worker to discuss advance care planning and answer your questions, or participate in Advance Care Planning via Group Visits (ACP-GV) where you and your loved ones can talk with other Veterans and caregivers about how to plan for the future.
Take care of surviving family
Eligible dependents of a Veteran who died from a condition related to service or who died in the line of duty may be eligible for survivor benefits, such as Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC). DIC is a tax-free monetary benefit that some surviving family members may qualify for. When applying for DIC, include the Veteran’s DD214 and death certificate indicating the cause of death.
Other benefits available to survivors include:
- Survivors Pension, which offers monthly payments to qualifying spouses and unmarried dependent children of wartime Veterans who meet certain income and net worth requirements.
- Month of Death Benefit, which is the final monthly payment of any VA compensation or pension benefits the Veteran was receiving.
- Accrued Benefits, which are unpaid benefits the Veteran was due before passing.
- Burial Allowance, which are monetary benefits to help pay for the Veteran’s burial and funeral costs.
Burial and memorial benefits
VA burial and memorial benefits preserve and honor a Veteran’s legacy. Veterans and their families can apply in advance to find out if they can be buried in a VA national cemetery by submitting an online pre-need eligibility application.
Spanning a network of 155 VA national cemeteries and over 120 VA-funded state, territorial and tribal cemeteries, the burial and memorial benefits available to Veterans include a designated final resting place, headstone or marker, burial flag, Presidential Memorial Certificate and perpetual care of the gravesite.
Keep it all together
Create a folder that has a copy of your DD214, Advance Care Plan, life insurance policy and pre-need burial eligibility decision letter. Ensure loved ones know where to find it and what actions they need to take after your death. Having important VA documents organized and easily accessible to your loved ones will relieve some stress after you pass.
For more information on planning for the future, visit VA.gov/plan-ahead.
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How do I get information on all these benefits? Is there somewhere near Knoxville? I can go to hear all this from an agent?
Info on DIC and Survivors Pension. Would like to know if I qualify.
IM IN LAS VEGAS AND WOULD LIKE SOMEONE TO REACH OUT TO ME REGARDING END OF LIFE BURIAL INFO! I NEED IT LIKE ASAP!
would like to talk to a va social worker. spent over 10k since 1978 for pre need and have no more va life insurance cashed in used for per need and other needs. am 100 persent servive connected living in sink hole house. FLORIDA THANK YOU.
More info for surviving spouses please. VA and MHS seems to forget they are still real people!!!!!!
Why is it before my husband died in April 2019 I applied for
Care taker for David I was told the day he had his first heart surgery I got denied this was wrong I quick my job to tale care of him I watch he dies slowly but the VA caretaker division never cared I should had something for taking care of him I made sure meds dr appointments were taken care of so someone needs to contact me. Please
92 years old. Need to be prepared.
Sense the military concluded drafting wills for retired and discharged veterans, the veterans affairs End of Life Planning program is an appreciated addition to veterans benefit discharged personnel will take advantage. Pass the knowledge forward so those not connected can benefit from this information, family taking care of family, the buddy system, no one left behind. Pay it forward. Budgets get tighter each year, so when there’s a program that lighten’s the load, it’s welcomed.
So is there somewhere a widow can see a pro bono lawyer to get my papers in order?? My husband was 100% permanently disabled and retired Navy Veteran with 3 tours in Vietnam and 1 in the Gulf War. So when he passed away in 2018 his money from the government went with him. Now prices go up and up. Any help out there for ME??
Did he belong to one of the service organizations? (VFW, AL, etc.)
That’s be a place to start.
There are definitely VA benefits available and there is no need for a lawyer. Get with any accredited service organization (DAV, VFW, American Legion, etc.) to begin the paperwork. DO NOT attempt it alone. These folks are experts on VA benefits whereas an attorney may not be. They know what VA needs to grant the benefit.
Go to: http://www.dav.org
Locate a service officer near you by using your zip code
Call and request a appointment
How was it that you were left flat broke? You say he was a 100% and no DIC survivors benefits? I guess you didn’t qualify for survivor retirement benefits or he left you out to get the max retirement pay? If none of this applies you might seek legal advice or a good Veterans Service Officer to clue you in. Good luck!