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VETERANS
– BENEFITS AND ORGANIZATIONS
BENEFITS AVAILABLE TO VETERANS
Connecticut residents who have served in any
branch of the Armed Forces may be entitled to
state and federal benefits in health care,
education, employment and training, pensions,
disability compensation, and other programs
available to eligible veterans. In addition,
families of veterans or surviving spouses and
dependents of deceased veterans may be entitled
to certain benefits. Organizations that help
veterans and their families with assistance and
information on claiming their benefits are
listed below.
CONNECTICUT STATE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS
AFFAIRS
The Connecticut State Department of Veterans
Affairs (CT DVA) Office of Advocacy and
Assistance provides advocacy and claims
assistance. Veterans can visit any CT DVA
district office or suboffice for:
- Advocacy and claims assistance for federal
VA and state VA benefits
- Burial Expense Assistance -
provides burial/headstone allowance for
eligible veterans
- Motor Vehicle Fee Exemptions –
for eligible disabled wartime veterans
- Property Tax Exemptions – for
eligible veterans and spouses through their
town’s Tax Assessor’s Office
- Soldiers’, Sailors’ and
Marines’ Fund – offers temporary, emergency
financial assistance for the health and
maintenance needs of eligible veterans, their
spouses (or widows), and their dependent
children
- Student Financial Aid - Tuition
Waiver Program waives fees at state community
technical colleges and state universities for
eligible veterans and eligible dependents
In addition, the CT DVA
administers the Veterans Home and Hospital,
which provides medical and rehabilitative care,
substance abuse treatment, transitional living,
and educational and employment services for
eligible wartime veterans.
Further information on State of Connecticut
benefit programs for eligible veterans and/or
their families and dependents can be found at
the CT DVA web site: http://www.state.ct.us/ctva/
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF
VETERANS AFFAIRS
The United States Department of Veterans Affairs
(VA) processes claims and provides information
regarding benefits and benefit eligibility for
all U.S. veterans. Examples of federal veterans
benefit programs are:
- Burial Expense Assistance -
Burial benefits for eligible veterans include
headstones and markers, burial flags,
reimbursement of a portion of burial expenses,
and burial in a VA national cemetery.
- Disability Compensation – for
veterans with service-related disabilities
- Veteran Pensions – for low
income veterans with at least 90 days of
active military service (at least one day of
which was during a period of war) and their
widows
- Prescription Expenses – free or
nominal fee cost on drugs prescribed by a VA
doctor
- Dependency and Indemnity
Compensation - compensation and pension
benefits paid out to eligible surviving
spouses and dependent children of veterans who
died of service-related causes
- Farm and Home Loans – provides
guaranteed loans to buy a home, or refinances
mortgages at lower interest rates to eligible
veterans, some surviving spouses of veterans
who have not remarried, and some military
personnel
Further information can be found
in the publication: “Federal Benefits for
Veterans, Dependents and Survivors ” available
in print or on the VA web site at: www.va.gov/opa/publications/benefits_book.asp
or by searching the U.S. Veterans Affairs web
site at www.va.gov/
Further information on VA Mortgage
Loan Programs can be found in the Article:
"Refinance & Mortgage Guide for U.S.
Veterans" posted on the website of Refinance
Mortgage Rates: www.refinancemortgagerates.org/refinance-mortgage-guide-for-u-s-veterans/
VA CONNECTICUT HEALTHCARE SYSTEM
In addition, the VA administers medical
centers in West Haven and Newington along with
satellite clinics located throughout Connecticut
that provide inpatient and outpatient medical,
rehabilitative, and psychiatric services,
detoxification and substance abuse treatment,
and community based social services for any
veteran with an honorable discharge and either
90 days of active duty served prior to 1980 or
24 months active duty served after 1980. Further
information on clinic locations, specialized
treatment programs, and other VA health care
services can be found in the 2-1-1 database and
on the VA Connecticut Healthcare System’s web
site: www.connecticut.va.gov/
SAMHSA RESOURCES FOR
VETERANS
Veterans and their families who are looking for
mental health or substance abuse services can
also visit the Substance
Abuse & Mental Health Services
Administration (SAMHSA) website: www.samhsa.gov/vets/#mh
Information found on the website includes mental
health facilities and substance abuse treatment
facilities locators; resources for military
families coping with trauma;and links to
websites of other organizations serving
veterans.
VETERANS ADVOCACY ORGANIZATIONS
1. The State
of Connecticut Veterans Affairs District
Offices help veterans advocate and file
benefits' claims.
2. There are other organizations
that will provide free advocacy and
representation for veterans filing, or
appealing, claims for veteran benefits offered
by local, state and federal veterans benefit
agencies:
NOTE: Service offices for
all four of these veterans’ service agencies,
along with Connecticut’s Regional Office of the
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, are located
at 555 Willard Avenue in Newington, CT.
HOW TO FIND PROVIDERS IN Connecticut's
Community Resources Database
Search 2-1-1’s on-line Special
Directory: Veterans/Military
Families
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SOURCES: Listings in 2-1-1 database;
“Federal Benefits for Veterans,Dependents and
Survivors”: 2011 Edition posted on the VA web
site
PREPARED BY: 211/pt
CONTENT LAST REVIEWED: June2012
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