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Fee hike potentially impacts California veterans
Residents at Barstow home may not see effect of change
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s new state budget proposal could potentially impact veterans across California, including those residing at the Veterans Home of California — Barstow.
The budget for 2009-2010 proposes an increase of $2.8 million in fees collected from veterans home residents to help alleviate the state budget crisis.
The potential fee increase would result from eliminating the dollar cap that puts a ceiling on how much veterans are required to pay to live at the homes, use its facilities and receive medical care.
Currently, veterans pay a percentage of their income ranging from 47.5 percent to 70 percent — according to the level of supervision and medical attention they need.
Their fees have been capped in the past, but if the proposal passes, residents with higher incomes will have to dig deeper into their pockets.
Approximately 17 percent of California veterans will be impacted if the fee hike passes, according to J.P. Tremblay, a deputy secretary at the California Department of Veterans Affairs.
Jamie Todd, administrator at the Barstow Veterans Home, said he anticipates that the potential fee hike will not affect many of his 176 residents, who are on fixed incomes of veterans pensions or Social Security, and only the more affluent who can afford it.
“If the residents have the means to pay more, it creates resources for the state of California,” he said.
Eleven-year veterans home resident Tom Clark agrees. Clark said that the only additional source of income that residents usually earn is by working at the home as a member helper for around $3 an hour — wages that aren’t considered income.
“You can’t find a better place than this for the money,” said the 75-year-old Clark.
In addition to eliminating the cap, the proposal tacks on a few other changes.
The proposal plans to increase fees for spouses of veterans who live at the homes to up to 90 percent of their income.
There will also be a change to the current system that categorizes veterans into groups that determine how much they pay in residential fees according to the level of medical attention they require. The current three-category system that groups veterans has been expanded to four, with a new category — Residential Care for the Elderly — placed between the previously lowest two levels of care, and charging 55 percent of a resident’s income.
Tremblay said the state created the new category because many veterans needed more care than the first category of independent living provided, but did not fall into the next category, assisted living, costing the state in medical expenses. The new system categorizes veterans more specifically, according to Tremblay.
The last time the state has raised fees was in 1994, he said.
“We’ve been fortunate to keep them down and stable for a long time,” said Tremblay.
The Barstow Veterans Home is one of three veterans homes in California. The home in Yountville has approximately 300 veterans and the home in Chula Vista has 1,000, according to Tremblay.
Contact the writer:
(760) 256-4122 or elee@desertdispatch.com
Potential changes for veterans
If it passes, the proposal would eliminate the maximum dollar amount that currently caps how much veterans pay to live at veterans homes, while maintaining the percentage by income. It also adds a new category of care.
CURRENT
Independent living = 47.5% of income, capped at $1,200/month
Assisted living = 65% of income, capped at $2,300/month
Skilled nursing care = 70% of income, capped at $2,500/month
PROPOSED
Independent living = 47.5% of income
Residential care for the elderly = 55% of income
Assisted living = 65% of income
Skilled nursing care = 70% of income
Source: California Department of Veterans Affairs
