Aid & Attendance
Aid & Attendance is the VA's enhanced pension for wartime veterans and surviving spouses who need help with daily living — up to $29,093 a year for a single veteran in 2026 — with care costs deductible from countable income and a $163,699 net-worth limit.
The pension that chases care bills
The defining mechanic: unreimbursed care costs (home care, assisted living, nursing care) reduce countable income above a small floor, so the formula — MAPR minus countable income — frequently pays the maximum to households whose care bills swallow their Social Security. Tax-free, unrestricted, and invisible to IRMAA. The full machinery — the 36-month look-back, Form 21-2680, the SMC alternative for service-connected needs — lives on the deep guide, and the estimator runs the formula with your numbers. A county VSO files the claim at no charge.
You earned these benefits. Make them work together.
Whether you keep exactly what you have or add Medicare coverage alongside it, the right answer depends on your health, budget, and how you like to get care.
No cost, no obligation. You can also get help from Medicare.gov, 1-800-MEDICARE (TTY 1-877-486-2048), or your local SHIP office.