VA Aid & Attendance is a federal benefit added to a qualifying veteran's or survivor's monthly pension for people who need help with daily activities, are bedridden due to illness, are in a nursing home because of mental or physical incapacity, or have a qualifying visual impairment. It's worth noting that a person can't receive both Aid & Attendance and Housebound benefits at the same time — it's one or the other.
Applying involves VA Form 21-2680, with nursing-home residents typically also needing VA Form 21-0779. These are federal procedures administered by the VA directly and are separate from anything Michigan Medicaid requires.
Where Michigan Medicaid intersects with this benefit is in the nursing-facility patient-pay calculation, where a confirmed $90 monthly allowance applies for a veteran receiving VA Improved Pension — the same figure that shows up in Michigan's broader personal-needs allowance structure.
Michigan figures
- Medicaid patient-pay allowance (veteran, VA Improved Pension)
- $90/month
Sources and official resources
- U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs: Aid and Attendance and Housebound
- U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs: Veterans Pension Rates
- MDHHS: Nursing Facility Eligibility
Rules and figures change. Confirm current details with the agency before you act.