Steve, a veteran who receives service-connected compensation for ALS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, often known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, has trouble walking up the stairs and it is getting increasingly difficult for him to get in to the bathtub. His wife, Jane, can no longer lift him into the tub.
Steve may be eligible for a grant from the VA to adapt his house to accommodate his disability. The VA provides grants to Service members and Veterans who have total service-connected disabilities to help modify a home, purchase an already adapted home, build an adapted home on land already acquired, or pay down the unpaid principal on the mortgage of an adapted home the Service member or Veterans has already acquired.
There are two types of grants, with unfortunately similar acronyms: the Specially Adapted Housing (SAH) Grant, which provides up to $67,555 or the Special Housing Adaptation (SHA) Grant, which provides a maximum of $13,511 in 2014.
The SAH Grant is available to Service members and Veterans who have certain permanent and total service-connected disabilities, such as the loss of or loss of use of both legs. The medical requirements for the SAH are presumed for those with ALS with a service-connected rating of 100%. In addition to the medical requirements, the disability must require that the Veteran or Service member have the regular and constant use of a wheelchair, brace, crutches or canes as the regular mode of locomotion.
The SHA Grant is available to Veterans and Service members who have service-connected disabilities which include: blindness in both eyes with 5/200 visual acuity or less; the anatomical loss or loss of use of both hands; certain severe burn injuries; or certain severe respiratory injuries.
Steve will need to file an application on VA Form 26-4555, Veteran’s Application in Acquiring Specially Adapted Housing or Special Housing Adaptation Grant. Those Service members or Veterans whose disability is not one presumed to meet the medical requirements for the grants will need to make sure that the VA Loan Guaranty office at their Veterans Regional Office gets a report of examination or hospitalization and VA Form 10-4555b, Certificate of Medical Feasibility.