Father Separated From Mother

[dshirsh]

My father has been legally separated from my mother for about 15 years. She receives a portion of his USAF retirement and SS checks every month per court order. Dad also receives a monthly VA disability check.
Our first attempt at doing the A&A application resulted in a denial.  The forms didn't provide any space for handling this type of situation. My mother also receives her own small SS and has an IRA. No other assets for either.

 Is A&A even possible in this situation?

[vetadmin]

As long as they are legally married, he has to show the finances and income for both of them, which may be the problem here.

The VA suggests that its adjudicators use a certain amount of personal
judgment on this issue. But the bottom line is: does it realistically appear
that the veteran or surviving spouse may outlive their assets? If so, they
are likely eligible.

Do NOT count their residence or vehicle when estimating net worth.

Do NOT count a life insurance policy (because the policy holder must be
deceased in order to benefit from it).

DO count CDs, annuities, stocks, bonds, savings, checking, IRAs, Keogh, etc.

DO count any assets owned by the spouse as well.

As a rule of thumb, assets should not exceed $80,000. That amount drops
depending on the age of claimant.

List below the estimated ANNUAL income of the veteran or surviving spouse:

Estimate total income (If married include spousal income): ______

All income must be included. This includes social security, pension,
interest income, dividends, income from rental property, etc.

If the veteran is married, then any spousal income must also be included.

List all unreimbursed, recurring health care expenses:

This includes:

Assisted Living costs (per month): _________________

Nursing Home costs (per month):________________

Home Care service (per month):_______________

Health Insurance premium (per month):_______________

Medicare premium (per month):_________________

Regular (unreimbursed) prescriptions
(per month & verifiable through a pharmacy print-out): _____________

TOTAL Expenses per month: __________
(multiply x 12 to get total annual expenses)

Subtract your total annual health care expenses from your total annual
income and write the amount here: _____________. This is your "countable"
income.