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Veterans Can Receive Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Benefits

July 16, 2013 by
Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a mental health problem that can occur after someone goes through a traumatic event such as a war, an assault, or a disaster. The effects of PTSD can be debilitating, with symptoms ranging from severe nightmares and flashbacks to insomnia and increasing social isolation.

Due to the severity of emotional problems that PTSD can cause, the Veteran’s Administration (VA) enacted regulations that classify PTSD as an injury, enabling veterans to receive monetary benefits – but only in limited cases.

VA services are provided to all veterans who have completed active military service and those who were discharged under other than dishonorable conditions.  A veteran must file a formal claim using forms provided by the VA’s Veterans Benefits Administration.  Although many vets won’t qualify for monetary compensation, they are eligible for PTSD support, provided by PTSD treatment programs nationwide that offer mental health assessments and testing, psychotherapy, family therapy, and group therapy.


Additionally, the VA offers Specialized Intensive PTSD Programs, which provide treatment in a “therapeutic community,” many in a live-in residence. The VA has nearly 200 PTSD treatment programs. A referral is usually needed to access the specialty programs.

Are you or your spouse a veteran? A benefit that you may be eligible for is Veterans Aid and Attendance.  Nearly 182,000 veterans and their spouses take advantage of the Veterans Aid and Attendance benefit, but VA officials say that many more are eligible.


To be eligible, beneficiaries must be at least 65 years old (or totally disabled), veterans or married to veterans who served during wartime, and must have been discharged under other than dishonorable conditions..  Applicants must also be medically needy, meaning  they need help with at least one activity of daily living: eating, walking, dressing, bathing, using the toilet, or adjusting prosthetic devices. Residents of nursing homes are automatically medically needy; those in assisted living facilities are almost always medically needy; those who require home health care are also typically eligible.

Evan H. Farr is an Accredited Attorney with the U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs, who understands both the Veterans Aid and Attendance Benefit and the Medicaid program and the interaction between both benefit programs.  If you are a Veteran or the spouse of a Veteran meeting the above requirements, please meet with us.  We can work with you to evaluate whether you qualify for The Veterans Aid and Attendance Benefit and help you file the paperwork.  Veterans can take advantage of a special 15% discount at The Fairfax Veteran’s Planning Law Firm of Evan H. Farr, P.C.  Call us at 703-691-1888 to make an appointment for a consultation.


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About Evan H Farr, CELA, CAP

Evan H. Farr is a 4-time Best-Selling author in the field of Elder Law and Estate Planning. In addition to being one of approximately 500 Certified Elder Law Attorneys in the Country, Evan is one of approximately 100 members of the Council of Advanced Practitioners of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and is a Charter Member of the Academy of Special Needs Planners.

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