LOUISIANA VETERANS BENEFITS BLOG
Law Office of Michael J. Sepanik. Representing Veterans in Louisiana and Nationwide.
VA Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) is a monthly benefit paid to qualifying surviving spouses and dependent children of Veterans. The monthly rate for 2023 is $1,562.74 and the benefits are tax exempt. For certain surviving spouses, additional monthly payments are available as part of their DIC eligibility. Continue reading “Widows (Surviving Spouses) May Be Owed Additional DIC Amounts”
Prostate cancer is one of the most common cause of cancer-related deaths. The VA considers prostate cancer as “presumptively related” to Agent Orange exposure, so that any Veteran who served in Vietnam will have their prostate cancer service-connected for disability purposes. Continue reading “Prostate Cancer and Vietnam-Era Service: What Widows Should Know”
When a married Veteran dies due to a condition related to their military service, their surviving spouse (and sometimes their children) is eligible to receive DIC- a monthly payment from the VA for the remainder of their lives. However, where Veterans were exposed to Agent Orange decades ago, yet were only recently diagnosed with cancer, survivors are often unaware of the fact that they may be owed DIC payments from the VA. Continue reading “What Surviving Spouses of Agent Orange-Exposed Veterans Need to Know”