VA Aid & Attendance in Colorado: A Step-by-Step Guide for Families

If your parent or grandparent served during a wartime period, there's a federal benefit that may add $1,500-$2,700 a month to their income to help pay for care — and most eligible veterans never claim it. Here's the Colorado-specific walkthrough on Aid & Attendance: who qualifies, what it covers, and how to apply without paying anyone for help.

What Aid & Attendance is

Aid & Attendance is an add-on to the VA's basic pension, not a separate program. The basic pension is a needs-based monthly payment to low-income wartime veterans and their surviving spouses. Aid & Attendance increases that pension when the recipient needs help with activities of daily living, is bedridden, lives in a nursing or assisted living facility, or has very limited eyesight.

In 2026, the maximum monthly Aid & Attendance benefit is roughly:

• Single veteran: $2,300-$2,400/month
• Veteran with one dependent: $2,800-$2,900/month
• Surviving spouse of a veteran: $1,500-$1,600/month
• Two married veterans, both qualifying: $3,600+/month

The benefit is tax-free and is paid directly to the veteran or spouse — it can be used for in-home care, an adult day program, assisted living, or memory care.

The four eligibility tests

1. Wartime service

The veteran must have served at least 90 days of active duty, with at least one day during a recognized wartime period. The main wartime windows that cover today's older veterans:

• World War II: Dec 7, 1941 - Dec 31, 1946
• Korean War: Jun 27, 1950 - Jan 31, 1955
• Vietnam War: Feb 28, 1961 (in Vietnam) or Aug 5, 1964 - May 7, 1975 (elsewhere)
• Gulf War: Aug 2, 1990 - present (still considered ongoing for benefit purposes)

The veteran did not have to serve in combat. Stateside service during a wartime period qualifies. Discharge must be other-than-dishonorable.

2. Care need

The applicant must require assistance with daily living, be a patient in a nursing facility, be bedridden, or have qualifying vision loss. A doctor's statement on VA form 21-2680 documents this.

3. Income and net worth

For 2026, the net worth limit (assets plus annual income) is roughly $159,000, but the calculation matters: unreimbursed medical and care expenses subtract from income on a dollar-for-dollar basis. That means a veteran with $4,000/month in care costs might qualify even with a respectable Social Security and pension, because care costs reduce countable income to near zero.

The primary residence (and a reasonable lot), one car, and personal belongings don't count toward net worth.

4. Age or disability

Pension applicants must be 65+, permanently and totally disabled, or in a nursing home. Aid & Attendance has no separate age requirement beyond the underlying pension rules.

Step-by-step: how to apply in Colorado

1. Gather documents: DD-214 (discharge paperwork), marriage certificate (and prior divorce decrees if applicable), spouse's death certificate for a surviving spouse, Social Security and pension award letters, and current bank statements.
2. Get the doctor's statement: VA form 21-2680, completed by your parent's physician, documenting the care need.
3. Itemize care costs: list every monthly recurring medical and care expense — assisted living rent and care fees, in-home care invoices, medication co-pays, Medicare premiums, supplemental insurance. These reduce countable income.
4. Choose your form: a veteran applying uses VA Form 21P-527EZ. A surviving spouse uses VA Form 21P-534EZ.
5. File the claim: submit online at va.gov, by mail to the VA Pension Management Center, or in person through a Veterans Service Officer.

Where to get free help in Colorado

You should not pay anyone to file this claim. Free, accredited help is available through:

• The Colorado Department of Military & Veterans Affairs and the Veterans Service Office in your county (Denver, Arapahoe, Jefferson, Adams, and Douglas counties all have one)
• National service organizations like the American Legion, VFW, and DAV — all have accredited service officers at no charge

Paid "pension planners" are sometimes scams and almost always unnecessary.

Timeline and what to expect

Realistic processing time in 2026 is 6-12 months, occasionally longer. Once approved, benefits are paid retroactive to the month after you filed an intent to file, which you should submit on day one to lock in the start date.

Once payments begin, the VA may periodically request a status update (Eligibility Verification Report) — keep your care invoices and bank statements organized.

How A&A stacks with other funding

Aid & Attendance plays well with other sources. A common Denver-area stack: Social Security + pension + A&A + drawdown from home sale proceeds covers assisted living in the metro area. For lower-income veterans, A&A plus Health First Colorado's HCBS waiver can fund in-home care almost entirely. Just note: A&A income counts toward Medicaid's income test, so the math gets specific. See our broader roundup of Denver funding sources for the full picture.

How to get help

Once A&A is approved (or while it's pending), choosing care that fits the benefit is the next step. Some Denver-area communities and in-home agencies are veteran-friendly and will let you defer or structure payments while the VA processes the claim. Tell us about your veteran and we'll point you to options in the metro area that work well with VA benefits — and to a free Veterans Service Officer if you haven't filed yet.