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My father has service twice a week for a dressing change. Medicare won’t cover it anymore. Age 98

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Is he seeing a doctor at the VA that has ordered the dressing change?
Have you called a Patient Advocate?
You can ask about Home Based Primary Care if it is difficult for him to get to the VA or the CBOC (Community Based Outpatient Clinic) for visits.
If he still needs dressing changes after a period of time that is normal there may be a problem that needs to be addressed other than just dressing changes.
And are the dressing changes something that you could do yourself?
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Hi
i live on the East coast and he is in AZ, so I cannot help. He has a urostomy which requires twice weekly changes. I said dressing to make it easier. So his bag and apparatus that it attaches to on his abdomen need to be changed/replaced. My mother has been doing this for almost 20yrs but her Alzheimer’s is getting to where she can’t do it well enough anymore. Home care has been seeing him 2x week for almost 2 months but are concerned that Medicare won’t cover an extension. My Edas goes to the community clinic at VA for his eye exams. I read that the VA also will send home care. Just wondering how to apply.
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Why won't Medicare pay anymore? I know you can't have Medicare and VA aid at same time. However, at age 90 the Veteran is supposed to be fast tracked thru the system. They are only supposed to have a certain amount of time to answer (6 months), but with his age, skip your local and go straight to the VA admin office.
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worriedinCali Apr 2020
You can have Medicare and the VA at the same time. My dad has both. Medicare only covers intermittent home care, it’s not a long term benefit they provide.
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How do get an advocate at the VA for my father? Do I go thru his local VA or is it centralized somewhere? He’s 98 yrs old. Living in his own home with my mother. She has Alzheimer’s. They can do their own self care.
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FloridaDD May 2020
In order to get VA aid and Attendance, they need to meet income and asset tests.  Not certain what you think VA gives above Medicare.
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Look into,"Veterans Aid & Attendance Pensions Benefit"
Check out these websites:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/nextavenue/2017/11/10/the-long-term-care-benefit-many-veterans-are-missing-out-on/#1fb932be6c23

And here too:
https://www.veteranaid.org/about.php

I hope this helps.
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Urostomy Care is taught to the family to do on their own, as you said your mom was taught to do. Medicare nor the VA will consider this “skilled nursing”. If your mother can demonstrate to a nurse that she can do the change (which is not very difficult) then she is considered not to need the help.
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Changing an ostomy bag; especially as this is not recent development, is probably not considered skilled care. It is not a sterile dressing. The fact that your mother used to be able to do it but not any more, is likely not their concerned. If they did cover it, what is the reason for the denial. You may have to arrange a home care visit and pay out of pocket for this.
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