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I had a Friend pass away recently. Retired military, and a veteran of Viet Nam and the Gulf War.

He had no surviving relatives other than his widow.

He had all of the process organized to apply for life insurance , funeral,Civil Service, Army Reserve, and Widows monthly VA pension, and had gone over this with me. He asked that upon his death that I follow through, since his wife is disabled.

I never realized how much paperwork was involved, and how many agencies I would have to deal with, ( OPM, Social Security, VA, Army Reserve, etc.) when I agreed.

His local VA rep was very helpful in filling out the initial forms for the Veterans benefits, including the amount she would receive each month.

The burial benefit arrived quickly.The VA rep also had me to fill out some type of form for one of the widows relatives to be paid for taking care of her, and send forms from her physicians that she was unable to live alone and care for herself.

It has been almost 4 months now and the widow has heard nothing from the VA. Repeated calls to the VA has gotten nowhere other than it is "in the system"..

 

Dues anyone here know how long it takes to start receiving her monthly payments?

 

 

ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ !

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VA did the $2000 death benefit pretty quick.  OPM took about 2 months and lumped both months in the first  deposit and is now regular.. Same with Army Reserve.  VA rep said they were waiting on paperwork from the Army.

My Friends widow is frustrated with the delay, not so much for the money, as much as she is about him serving, being combat wounded, and having his death related with Agent Orange, and the battle he had to go through all these years with the VA to get his disability percentage. I believe he was rated 60, then 80%. When Hospice was called in he was rated finally 100%  He lived one more month.

 

Thank You all for the information.

Originally Posted by Harald Weissberg:

VA did the $2000 death benefit pretty quick.  OPM took about 2 months and lumped both months in the first  deposit and is now regular.. Same with Army Reserve.  VA rep said they were waiting on paperwork from the Army.

My Friends widow is frustrated with the delay, not so much for the money, as much as she is about him serving, being combat wounded, and having his death related with Agent Orange, and the battle he had to go through all these years with the VA to get his disability percentage. I believe he was rated 60, then 80%. When Hospice was called in he was rated finally 100%  He lived one more month.

 

Thank You all for the information.

__________________________________________

Indemnity payments for 100 percent disability should be about $1,100 monthly.

My dad was a WWII vet, passed away 10 years ago. Last year 1 of my sisters heard of the survivors benefits and did all of the massive paper work involved to apply for it for my mom, who is 90. After several months she got the news that she qualified and they would start sending her money, even getting a lump sum that would cover the time from when the application was first made. About 6 months later, not having received anything, mom got a letter saying they were not going to give her any benefits but that she could apply again later.

 

Good luck to your friend and good for you for helping her.

Originally Posted by peede coober 2:

My dad was a WWII vet, passed away 10 years ago. Last year 1 of my sisters heard of the survivors benefits and did all of the massive paper work involved to apply for it for my mom, who is 90. After several months she got the news that she qualified and they would start sending her money, even getting a lump sum that would cover the time from when the application was first made. About 6 months later, not having received anything, mom got a letter saying they were not going to give her any benefits but that she could apply again later.

 

Good luck to your friend and good for you for helping her.

 

 

That sucks. It is awful the way our Vets and their Families are treated sometimes.

 

My Friend had all of this in order, and on paper. Even down to who to start with / contact  first.

 She will be taken care off no matter what. It was a promise.

Originally Posted by HIFLYER2:

I would reach out to the local VFW group, they probably have all the info.  Good on you taking care of this vets last wishes and wife! You could also call your Congressman And ask why the delay.

 

I contacted the VA rep who first aided us in getting the claim prepared, around 2 months later. I was told that, by Law, the VA had 120 days to respond.

When it started getting close to that deadline, 2 more weeks from now, I mentioned about  contacting my lawyer or a Senator.  His Widow totally panicked. She is afraid it would anger the VA and just cause more delay, or even a denial.

Like I said, she is OK financially. The life insurance payoff was a substantial one. Deposited and being reviewed by a trusted financial planner as to how to best draw interest.  What she is drawing from OPM and Reserve more than meets her monthly needs. She is living safely with Family members and is happy with it.

It's just the frustration and stress she is having with the VA. 

I don't mind doing this, but she asks almost daily what I have found out.

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