Veteran Clothing allowance

[sadiemae]

For all Vets who are in a wheelchair, A yearly clothing allowance of $700 is available. Checks went out last week,so if you haven't requested it, do so at he Prostetics dept at your local VAMC

 

[grandmommyk]

Thank you. I can't believe all the things they never bother to mention. I just talked to someone last week with the VA to see if they might pay for some of the special pants.

 

[Atsugi]

VA is a highly stove-piped organization structure, and administers many complex laws that have been enacted over the decades and are subject to quarterly budget variations. As a result, few VA people understand their own "area of expertise" very well, and perhaps NO VA employee understands the whole thing.

It's really common--the norm--that the VA employee you're talking to only knows a few programs, and has never even heard of many other programs you're eligible for.

You just gotta educate yourself, read all the literature, and get to know a whole bunch of VA people.

By the way, I AM one.

 

[retiredmus2010]

We all remain most appreciative that you are so very helpful! With all of our other duties as a caregiver, it becomes a time crunch to do the research, pick brains, ask questions....... and still remain our cheerful little selves. Geesh..... STRESS! That's why now, I eat dessert first. JUST KIDDING. But thank you, thank you, thank you. We are still waiting for the clothing allowance check up here in the NORTH but was told that it would come anywhere in the next 90 days.

 

[grandmommyk]

I called the prosthetic department at Houston VA this morning. The lady did seems a little confused. She asked me if they were providing special clothing for him now. I said no. She said I would have to fill out an application to receive reimbursement for special adaptive clothing we had bought and that he had worn at least one time. Eventually I was put through to the voice mail of a lady who works with that type thing and can get me the application. We will see.

And yes thank you and everyone for any information that can help to make life easier. I thought I was well educated on ALS and the VA until I found this forum. I have read their handbooks, and knew they provided a clothing grant for people with prosthetic. I did not know that being wheelchair bound counted for that.

 

[grandmommyk]

The lady called back and after much questioning on my part, I was told there is a grant. The form is online, I can mail or fax it. She doesn't know how long the process takes.

While looking for the form, I found a little 4 page booklet explaining the process more. According to it, that allowance is granted every August, but you have to have your application in by August 1 to receive any benefits for the year. According to that, the prosthetic department is supposed to make the veteran aware of the grant when the veteran is granted disability, or when the veteran begins to use a devise if they already receive disability. My husband got his first chair from the VA in 97. He is currently in his third from them besides two that I got from medicare before he was service connected. Both times he desperately needed a new one and the orders kept getting lost somewhere between the prosthetic department and a vender.
He was granted service connection as of Sept 2008. I don't blame this all on the prosthetic department. I doubt they were made aware of each ALS patient when they went from non service connected to service connected. It does however upset me that by the time he gets the benefit in 2012, he will have missed out on 3 years of it.

 

[Atsugi]

Regarding the August payment cycle. Yes, true, you may have missed the deadline, HOWEVER, comma, conversely: Although "rules are rules," and the VA is the greatest bureaucracy outside of China, the biggest rules in the VA are "Grant if you can--deny if you must" and " to care for him who shall have borne the battle."

The Independent Living Program run by the Vocational Rehab office is authorized to buy ANYTHING that could maximize the quality of life for a PALS under Chapter 31 rules.

 

[grandmommyk]

I didn't know that was their motto. We are new to Vocational Rehab. We have had our initial interview and also the home evaluation. I talked to the lady who did the home eval about the problems I was having with dressing, undressing Rick and getting pants up and down for using the potty. That is part of the report she is submitting to the VA.
Rick is very particular about the clothes he wears, and it is hard to find ones that fit him. It has been really hard just finding elastic waist pants that he would wear. He doesn't like the idea of special pants that open in the back, but I convinced him to let me talk to them about it. He did look at a couple of pair I found on the internet. I even suggested that if the VA got him some, we could take them to a seamstress and have her make some that would be more with what he likes. However since he doesn't like the idea of adaptive pants to begin with, he will not agree for me to spend our own money on them.
I think the VA will get him some since the Vocab Department is recommending it, however I am afraid he will refuse to even try them. I think we would have a much better shot at this if we had the clothing allowance and picked them out ourselves.
Of course that isn't the VA's fault that he is so particular. What I don't understand is why they don't have someone meet with you when you become service connected and go over everything you are eligible for. Since his service connection began in 2008, it seems we could have applied than and received the allowance in 2009,10 & 11. That is $2100, and the only reason I found out about it now is because of this forum.

 

[sadiemae]

I know, It sucks. I plan on working in some form as a VA advocate for PALS some day, if the VA doesn't take our benefits away. They are proposing to sever my husbands Service Connection, as he was Army Nat Guard, and his 90 days Active Duty was for training only. If they succeed in taking away his service connection, I will fight till my dying day to get the law changed. I will fight even if by some miracle we get to keep them too.

 

[grandmommyk]

Sadiemae, I am so sorry that they are thinking of taking away benefits. As frustrated as I get with the VA, they are one of our greatest blessings. I have no idea what we would do without them. Even before the service connection they provided equipment, medicines (sometimes with copays, sometimes without), etc which was a huge help. However the 13 years between him being able to work and them actually declaring him service connected were absolutely horrible, especially after I had to quit work. I can't imagine what it would be like if we thought they might take away his compensation.

One of the things I don't understand is how they differentiate. Like saying caregivers of veterans post 9/11 get caregiver pay, but no other era does. I have the utmost respect and thankfulness for those servicemen, veterans and their families, but it almost seems like they are saying that what the rest of the veterans did is not as important, and their care isn't as important.

As for your husband, he was in the military for 90 days, so he was just as exposed to whatever as anyone else who was in for 90 days. I am so sorry you have this to worry about.