Navigating the VA pension process can be trying sometimes.  I have compiled a list, thanks to our resident experts Joe Anne Swain and Lisa Kopeck,  of some very simple things you can do to ensure that your client’s application is not returned. Always make sure that another knowledgeable person reviews the application BEFORE it is submitted. …

Tuesday, May 19, 2020 (U.S. Senate) – Senate Veterans’ Affairs Ranking Member Jon Tester (D-Mont.) led Senators Joe Manchin (D-W.V.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), and Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) in introducing legislation to ensure veterans and their representatives have 48 hours to review and dispute disability claims before they are finalized. Earlier this…

The VAPT is a powerful tool that can protect assets while enabling the grantor to qualify for needs-based pension benefits. There are two sub-trusts within the VAPT – one is a grantor sub-trust and the other is a non-grantor sub-trust. Why is it structured this way? The VA has a direct line of communication with…

Today, Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) and Ranking Member Jon Tester (D-Mont.) led a bipartisan group of Senators – all members of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs – urging President Trump to award the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Harry W. Colmery, a Kansan and World War I veteran as well…

Review of Important 2019 Changes to VA 2019 brought significant changes to VA laws and policies. Following is a recap of two of these changes. One of the most significant changes was related to Blue Water Navy Veterans who served on or near the coast of Vietnam during the Vietnam War. The VA has now…