The Independence Fund Submits "Petition for Rulemaking" to Reform Military Caregiver Program

WASHINGTON, Feb. 15, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- New restrictions enacted by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) will eliminate benefits and support to at least 6,700 Military Caregivers. The Independence Fund is leading a coalition of 21 like-minded military and Veteran organizations to demand amended regulations by submitting a Petition for Rulemaking.

The Independence Fund's efforts focus on preventing the disenrollment of thousands of deserving Veterans and the Caregivers who support them, but who will no longer qualify for VA Caregiver benefits under the new restrictions. "The VA's new regulation was unnecessary. The prior regulation was still legal, and the VA could have simply used that regulation for the new Veterans. By making eligibility more restrictive, tens of thousands of Veterans will be denied entry into the program, or will be kicked out despite the physical and mental sacrifices they made for our country," says The Independence Fund's Executive Vice President, CAPT Bob Carey, USN (Ret). "The VA's new regulation is too restrictive, arbitrarily applied, and leaves critical gaps in support for these military families."

Under the revisions to the Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers (PCAFC) a Caregiver's benefits will be eliminated if a Veteran or their Caregiver works outside the home. Additionally under the new restrictive program, a Veteran must have a minimum 70% disability rating to receive benefits, and fail to achieve their Activities of Daily Life (ADLs) independently 100% of the time. The VA categorizes walking, feeding, dressing and grooming, toileting, bathing, and transferring themselves from one location to another as ADLs. Further, the updated provisions require annual assessments of a Veteran's true needs, even in the case of the most catastrophically disabled Veterans.

"While the VA attempts to standardize the execution of this program in the field with the regional evaluation teams," says Carey, "the way the regulations are written leads to huge variations in execution: What's a baseline of dressing for presentability? What constitutes a well-executed transfer from bed to a wheelchair? Importantly, the whole process has been profoundly shifted from a Veteran's performance on his or her worst day to his or her best."

"With more than 100,000 new Veterans applying for these benefits, the need for this program is great and increasing." continues Carey. "We, and the 20 other Veteran organizations who joined us in our Petition to the VA, are asking the VA to change these regulations now. We don't take our role as leaders and voices for Veterans and Caregivers lightly, and we look forward to working with these groups to amplify the voices of disabled military Veterans, and the Caregivers and families who support them, and urge the VA to drop these unnecessary and unfair restrictions."

PETITION FOR RULEMAKING SIGNERS:
The Independence Fund
American Logistics Association
American Military Society
American Retirees Association
American Veterans (AMVETS)
Armed Forces Retirees Association
Catholic War Veterans and Auxiliary of the USA
Chief Warrant And Warrant Officer Association Of The U.S. Coast Guard
Fleet Reserve Association
Healing Household 6
Jewish War Veterans of The United States of America
Military-Veterans Advocacy, Inc.
National Defense Committee
National Military Family Association
Reserve Organization of America
Sea Service Family, Foundation
The Military Order of the Purple Heart
United States Army Warrant Officer Association
Veteran Warriors, Inc.
VetsFirst
Vietnam Veterans of America

ABOUT THE INDEPENDENCE FUND:  
Established in 2007, The Independence Fund is a national Veterans Service Organization dedicated to meeting the unmet needs of catastrophically wounded Veterans, Caregivers, and their families through a variety of programs. To learn more, visit www.independencefund.org.

Media Contacts:
Caroline Arey, Strategic Messaging Director
[email protected]  
(704) 608.8770

SOURCE The Independence Fund