Every year in January, we at the Law Offices of Shawn Weera get multiple questions from our existing clients who are receiving Veteran’s Administration (VA) benefits as either a wartime veteran or their surviving spouse. This is because these clients have just received an EVR (Eligibility Verification Report) from the VA.
The purpose of the Eligibility Verification Report is two-fold. First, the Veteran’s Administration wants to make sure that the estimated expenses and income that the veteran reported for the last calendar year (2011) were fairly accurate and, if possible, award them any extra benefits if the expenses were greater than expected. Second, they want to determine if the veteran or their spouse is expected to remain eligible for benefits for the current year (2012).
We have had clients who decided not to fill out these forms or, alternatively, didn’t return the completed form in a timely fashion. However, if you fail to complete your Eligibility Verification Report or fail to return the completed form in a timely manner, your benefits will be discontinued. With most Veteran’s Administration applications taking six to eight months to get approved, don’t let procrastination cause you to lose your benefits for several months.
The EVR needs to be completed carefully, and many recipients make the mistake of not including the costs of their assisted living/skilled nursing/home care as a medical expense. In most cases, these costs are what entitled the veteran or spouse to get the aid and attendance benefit in the first place. So a failure to include these costs on your EVR will likely cause your benefits to stop and could even cause the VA to issue a demand for repayment.
If you have received an Eligibility Verification Report from the Veteran’s Administration, please call our offices at (616) 940-3370 or toll-free at (877) 933-7252. We want to assist you in completing this form accurately and returning it in a timely fashion so that you can continue to receive the benefits that you deserve.
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