Attendance Allowance

Nemo wrote:I applied for the Attendance Allowance about 3 weeks ago. I had a RN come do an assessment today. They have many pages to fill out. Will be asked about things you can do and can't do in certain areas. Will do a very quick cognitive test. Ask some mental health questions. The RNs are independant from VAC so they can't approve your allowance nor can they tell you if you will be approved nor at what level. So now I wait and see what VAC will decide.

l was told the nurse that does the assessment can decide AA or not. So what your saying is , the nurse who did all the leg work can write up a recommendation for a veteran to get AA. And some random VAC superior can turn around and say “ sorry we disagree “. Wow, just wow.

Oh Six your my hero.

Tells us all your ideas and wisdom. Your the best Mr Six

Six-Actual wrote:

Unknown Soldier wrote:

Nemo wrote:I applied for the Attendance Allowance about 3 weeks ago. I had a RN come do an assessment today. They have many pages to fill out. Will be asked about things you can do and can't do in certain areas. Will do a very quick cognitive test. Ask some mental health questions. The RNs are independant from VAC so they can't approve your allowance nor can they tell you if you will be approved nor at what level. So now I wait and see what VAC will decide.

l am confused by the qualifications for an AA. It mentions that a veteran must be “ totally disabled”, what if the person has 10 minor disabilities of 10% each that would equal 100% disabled yet, the injuries would not rate very ( if at all ) incapacitating on the chart of feeding, bathing etc. , the chart has 5 levels , what if you were only the lowest level in just one of the categories, would you still qualify, or is it even worth entertaining?

Not all the 10% disabilities adding up to 100% will affect the veteran 100% of the time. It all depends on the activities being undertaken.

So basically the indoctrination of this Mr. Six’s mind with VAC is basically saying if your not almost dead and blown up at 98% you don’t really deserve the 100% if you have 10 injuries that equal 100%.

Strange way to think, I am sure worker’s compensation doesn’t think like that.  Just political agents and some VAC employees think like that.

Unknown Soldier wrote:

Nemo wrote:I applied for the Attendance Allowance about 3 weeks ago. I had a RN come do an assessment today. They have many pages to fill out. Will be asked about things you can do and can't do in certain areas. Will do a very quick cognitive test. Ask some mental health questions. The RNs are independant from VAC so they can't approve your allowance nor can they tell you if you will be approved nor at what level. So now I wait and see what VAC will decide.

l am confused by the qualifications for an AA. It mentions that a veteran must be “ totally disabled”, what if the person has 10 minor disabilities of 10% each that would equal 100% disabled yet, the injuries would not rate very ( if at all ) incapacitating on the chart of feeding, bathing etc. , the chart has 5 levels , what if you were only the lowest level in just one of the categories, would you still qualify, or is it even worth entertaining?

Not all the 10% disabilities adding up to 100% will affect the veteran 100% of the time. It all depends on the activities being undertaken.

Unknown Soldier wrote:

johnny211 wrote:Unknown Soldier- I had mine since last fall. It seems strange that those things would be excluded. For instance a Vet with severe ptsd/ anxiety issues always has memory problems. So cooking and leaving the stove or oven on to catch fire, is a problem. Managing money and social outings are always a prob for most with mental issues.
 I would say give it a go, and let them do there assessment. VVV

yes, this is what VAC is secretly doing, much like the initial medical forms that a veteran takes to a DR. to claim a PTSD disability, they have trimmed the forms from 16 pages to 8 and taken out all the mental impairment questions. Now it seems if a veteran already suffers from PTSD as well as other issues that put them over the 100% mark, they still do not qualify for an Attendance Allowance because the limitations caused by such a disability are now excluded.

Has anyone had an AA assessment since April 1?, I believe I`m a candidate under the old rules, but the new tiers and explanations have removed any mention of disability in relation to chronic pain and mental issues, which are the main source of my limitations. From others I have read that in the past RN`s attend your home and fill out 2 hrs of paperwork, but what does the process look like now? I mean, I can feed and dress myself but under the old system, that was only half the battle, now it seems VAC doesn`t care if a vet has multiple injuries that cause him pain, or the symptoms of anxiety, depression, isolation etc. brought on by PTSD etc.

johnny211 wrote:Unknown Soldier- I had mine since last fall. It seems strange that those things would be excluded. For instance a Vet with severe ptsd/ anxiety issues always has memory problems. So cooking and leaving the stove or oven on to catch fire, is a problem. Managing money and social outings are always a prob for most with mental issues.
 I would say give it a go, and let them do there assessment. VVV

yes, this is what VAC is secretly doing, much like the initial medical forms that a veteran takes to a DR. to claim a PTSD disability, they have trimmed the forms from 16 pages to 8 and taken out all the mental impairment questions. Now it seems if a veteran already suffers from PTSD as well as other issues that put them over the 100% mark, they still do not qualify for an Attendance Allowance because the limitations caused by such a disability are now excluded.

Unknown Soldier- I had mine since last fall. It seems strange that those things would be excluded. For instance a Vet with severe ptsd/ anxiety issues always has memory problems. So cooking and leaving the stove or oven on to catch fire, is a problem. Managing money and social outings are always a prob for most with mental issues.
I would say give it a go, and let them do there assessment. VVV

johnny211 wrote:Unknown Soldier - I have AA. DVA will send out a nurse who is contracted. She will do a complete physical and mental assessment. It consists of about 10 pages of ? They will ask you what you can and cannot do daily, in the house and outside. Things like cooking, getting in and out of bed, shower, how far you can walk, cleaning yourself, etc. It’s quite involved. But just be honest and straight with them.
  Then she will type the report for DVA. Only took a few wks to get a reply. As I think it’s not one everyone can get. Any other ? Just pm me..VVV

that’s what I thought, but according to the VAC site, modified mid Feb. in big bold black letters it now states “ In determining the Grade of AA, activities such as housekeeping, preparing meals, shopping/errands, laundry, grounds keeping, repair and maintenance, using transportation or driving, using the telephone, managing money and social or recreational activities, are not taken into consideration.“

Unknown Soldier - I have AA. DVA will send out a nurse who is contracted. She will do a complete physical and mental assessment. It consists of about 10 pages of ? They will ask you what you can and cannot do daily, in the house and outside. Things like cooking, getting in and out of bed, shower, how far you can walk, cleaning yourself, etc. It’s quite involved. But just be honest and straight with them.
Then she will type the report for DVA. Only took a few wks to get a reply. As I think it’s not one everyone can get. Any other ? Just pm me..VVV

Nemo wrote:I applied for the Attendance Allowance about 3 weeks ago. I had a RN come do an assessment today. They have many pages to fill out. Will be asked about things you can do and can't do in certain areas. Will do a very quick cognitive test. Ask some mental health questions. The RNs are independant from VAC so they can't approve your allowance nor can they tell you if you will be approved nor at what level. So now I wait and see what VAC will decide.

l am confused by the qualifications for an AA. It mentions that a veteran must be “ totally disabled”, what if the person has 10 minor disabilities of 10% each that would equal 100% disabled yet, the injuries would not rate very ( if at all ) incapacitating on the chart of feeding, bathing etc. , the chart has 5 levels , what if you were only the lowest level in just one of the categories, would you still qualify, or is it even worth entertaining?

I applied for the Attendance Allowance about 3 weeks ago. I had a RN come do an assessment today. They have many pages to fill out. Will be asked about things you can do and can't do in certain areas. Will do a very quick cognitive test. Ask some mental health questions. The RNs are independant from VAC so they can't approve your allowance nor can they tell you if you will be approved nor at what level. So now I wait and see what VAC will decide.

Nemo, I would do one online, then printed one send to their central office and sent one to your CM.
Let them figure it out where it goes.
They do not reply 'on time' to what you sent. Things disappear; sent one to CM (they seems to forget to forward it to appropriate 'office'. That is my experience with them. Send copies using all the available venues.
My two cents

I wish I could help, but my last CM approved me during my first home visit with her. I believe they have since stripped them of that power.

I tried to do this online (attendance allowance request) but don't see that the system actually sent it. So where do I mail it to? So far, I have just seen a very simple one page form. Is that it?

Thank you Trooper appreciate your help. Take care