Last week we watched as our lawmakers come together to pass the Coronavirus Stimulus Package, but what does this mean for our Veterans?  A few things have changed since Friday.

The original plan said that anyone that did not have to file taxes would have their stimulus checks direct deposited if they had an account on file. What our representatives did not take into account was our privacy laws!

Due to the IRS being the only government division authorized to pay out the stimulus money, and the Social Security system unable to share every person they serve’s private information, the White House had to release a statement saying that Social Security and Social Security Disability recipients would be sent a check in the mail (which are penciled in to be sent late July to early August.) Between Saturday and Monday our office reached out to our contacts to ask if they were working on a plan to  direct deposit this money since the stimulus amount, however welcomed, has the potential to have to review how we are planning for VA Pension, Medicaid, and Medicare.

Yesterday Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said, “We expect that within three weeks, that people who have direct deposit with information with us will see those direct deposits into their bank accounts, and we will create a web-based system for people where we don’t have their direct deposit, they can upload it so that they can get the money immediately as opposed to checks in the mail.”

This afternoon, April 1st, we received a call from Senator Manchin’s office that the IRS had worked out a plan for those on Social Security and Social Security Benefits.  It will require those that don’t file tax returns to file a simple tax return and upload it to the IRS website.  The form needed is still not live on the IRS website but there is a statement that reads:

The distribution of economic impact payments will begin in the next three weeks and will be distributed automatically, with no action required for most people. However, some seniors and others who typically do not file returns will need to submit a simple tax return to receive the stimulus payment. Please do not call the IRS about this. When more specific details become available, we will update this page.

The VA has yet to comment on how the stimulus package will affect VA Pension.  Our office will be on a conference call with VA Under Secretary, Dr. Paul Lawrence, PhD where we hope we will get closer to a decree saying that VA Pension will not be affected by any stimulus payment.

We will update you with the latest information as it is available.