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I have applied for the Aid and Attendance Benefit for my Mom as the surviving spouse of a qualifying veteran. From what I have been told, she qualifies for this benefit however it seems to be taking an awfully long time and it sometimes feels we are now getting the run around...I am sure there are others of you out there who have gone through this....on average what time frame has it taken for this process to be approved, from start to finish....We began this back in February and still it drags on...Thanks for any info you can give. I am Mom's caregiver 24/7 and cannot work because I cannot leave her.

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Only God knows what the VA does with our applications. We are still waiting having filed May 30th. I got Sen. John McCain's office involved, but who knows if that will do any good. Hope you receive yours before us. Waiting, and waiting...
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When I first admitted my Dad to an Assisted Living Facility they told me about a VA Rep. and I called him here in the East Tx area. You might call the Assisted Living facilities and see if they might know a rep. Our representative got us setup within 4 months and with back pay which was very nice. My dad 91 is receiving it now and is making his money stretch a lot further- what a blessing.
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We applied in June 2012 and started receiving monthly benefits in April 2013. We received back pay for the months between in August 2013.
Good luck.
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I don't know how long it takes as I only now started to think about getting someone for my parents. Now that I know it could take six months or more, I believe I'll start the process now. I need a full-time job and maybe by the time I find one the VA aid will be available. I hope someone comes through soon for you. Thank you for your question, now I know I need to start before I desperately need it.
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my understanding was from the time of application is received at VA
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the va will stall you till were all dead. an aging service knows how to cram the apps thru and they dont charge for it. they can make it happen in 4 months.
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We just received approval for Aid and Assistance for mom. I went to our county’s Veteran’s Assistance office, and the man in charge of benefits was a godsend. We filed on September 25 and recieved the approval letter on 11/16. Along with the application, he included a request that they expedite due to mom’s advanced age (she’s 98). There was no fee involved. Check to see if th
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It is a fact that the VA pays retroactively. Payments are retroactive to the 1st of the month following the month of application.
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Thanks everyone for your responses. What I am finding seems to be that it SHOULD take about four to five months...HOWEVER, as with most things, it depends on who you get to assist you. My brother, (who is NOT a caregiver for my Mom) got a woman who is not even in our county to do the inital filings and after months and months, I have discovered had I filed in OUR county and used our VSO it might already be determined...We filed in FEBRUARY 2013 and today I hear it could be another month or two....so disappointing to put veterans and their spouses through this after all they have been through. I have had to resubmit and resubmit and send more info , etc.....It did not have to be this way. I would hightly advise anyone applying for this benefit after what I have discovered the past three or four days to go to a Veterans Service Office and get the assistance of someone who actually cares....but I am not giving up....and I encourge those applying to not give up...thanks again for everyone's response...seems I am in the same boat as everyone else....
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My experience with the VA was this: It took 18 mos. for them to approve the application. I completed the application on my own, took it to the Veterans Service Organization (VSO) and had them review it before submitting it. I called numerous times and would get conflicting information depending on who I spoke to. When they finally did approve the application, they paid her retroactive monies to the beginning of the process. If you are the VA appointed fiduciary (another drawn out process) be prepared to do an accounting for those monies. Also, someone from the fiduciary unit will visit both the beneficiary and you in person. It is a tedious process.

The VSO was very helpful. But, I called for myself. Keep notes on the conversations that you have with the reps. trust me they come in handy.

I also found that even though I was my cousins court appointed guardian and conservator the VA would NOT accept those documents. They required me to complete their paperwork for fiduciary responsibilities. The utterly mind blowing thing that frustrated me was they kept asking me to have my cousin sign documents that she could not understand, even after I explained until I was blue in the face that the woman has Alzheimer's. They didn't care.

So, depending on your situation you may not have to wait as long. I was told that I could submit paperwork for a hardship if I wanted the paperwork processed faster. That meant that my cousin had to be in the process of being evicted and or destitute. Since she didn't meet that criteria, I had to wait it out.

Good luck.

cyoungbooks
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