A program that can keep disabled vets out of hospitals and nursing homes and cared for at home is being pushed for expansion.
US Senator Dick Durbin is calling for more room inside the VA Family Caregivers Program. Currently only disabled vets post 9/11 qualify. Durbin wants vets from all wars to be able to apply for the VA program that allows for vet’s families to receive caregiver home health training, support and a small financial stipend.
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Durbin says that in small towns and rural America this is a good way to keep families together and loved one’s close.
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Durbin sites financial numbers that says a year of care in a VA nursing home costs $332,000, its $88,000 a year in a community nursing home and through the Care Givers Act the VA cost per veteran is $36,000 a year.
The program, introduced in 2009, has been a major success. Enrollment tops 22,000 and can save the county money while allowing more vets to be cared for at home.
