Military Families and Aid and Attendance in the Lowcountry

Why this benefit matters here

With Joint Base Charleston, decades of Navy history and a VA medical center on the peninsula, the Lowcountry has a large population of veterans and military retirees. Many of their families never hear about Aid and Attendance until a parent is already paying for care, and some never hear about it at all.

Aid and Attendance is not a separate benefit. It is an increase to the VA's needs-based Veterans Pension or Survivors Pension for wartime veterans and surviving spouses who need help with daily activities, are bedridden, live in a nursing home or have limited eyesight.

Current rates

VA pension rates effective December 1, 2025 through November 30, 2026.

How care costs change the math

VA pays the difference between the maximum rate and the household's countable income. Unreimbursed medical and care costs, including assisted living charges and in-home care, are subtracted from income first. That is how a veteran whose pension income looks too high on paper can still qualify once the cost of care is counted.

This simplified illustration ignores VA's deductible threshold and other details. VA makes the actual calculation from the claim. The net worth limit, $163,699 for the period beginning December 1, 2025, also applies.

Getting help with the claim

Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester counties each have a veterans affairs office whose accredited officers file pension and Aid and Attendance claims at no charge. Bring the DD-214, marriage certificate for a spouse claim, income and asset records, a statement of care costs from the facility or agency and a physician's statement about the need for help.

Be cautious with anyone who charges to prepare a claim or to rearrange assets for eligibility. VA forms are free, VA looks back three years for asset transfers, and a transfer in that window can trigger a penalty of up to five years.

Surviving spouses are often missed

Many surviving spouses of wartime veterans do not realize they may qualify for Survivors Pension with Aid and Attendance. Under the rates effective December 1, 2025, a surviving spouse with no dependents can receive up to $18,697 a year with Aid and Attendance, about $1,558 a month, if income, net worth and care needs qualify.

Widows and widowers of veterans who served during a recognized wartime period should ask the county veterans affairs office whether a claim makes sense, especially once assisted living or home care costs begin.

Combining VA benefits with other help

VA pension can be combined with private savings, long-term care insurance and, in some cases, other programs, but each program counts income differently. A pension increase may affect eligibility for Optional State Supplementation or Medicaid, so plan the order of applications with a counselor.

The Trident Area Agency on Aging's counselors and the county veterans affairs office can help a family see how the pieces fit together before filing.

VA health care in Charleston

Separate from pension, VA health care is available to many veterans through the Ralph H. Johnson VA medical center on the Charleston peninsula and its outpatient clinics. Some veterans qualify for VA-paid home and community-based services, such as home health aides or adult day health care, depending on eligibility and clinical need.

Ask the veteran's VA primary care team about those services. They are distinct from Aid and Attendance and can sometimes be used alongside it.

State veterans homes

South Carolina runs six state veterans nursing homes, none in the three counties. The closest is Veterans' Victory House in Walterboro (843-538-3000). Admission has its own rules, including South Carolina residency and honorable or general discharge, and there can be a wait.

More on the benefit is on our Aid and Attendance guide.