Health care
Idaho State Veterans Homes
Four state skilled nursing homes, at Boise, Pocatello, Lewiston and Post Falls, for Idaho residents discharged under honorable conditions with at least 90 days of service and a nursing need, and for their spouses; wartime veterans get priority, and applicants must apply for VA pension and Aid and Attendance and for Medicaid or pay the maximum monthly charge.
Also called: veterans home, nursing home, skilled nursing, Boise, Pocatello, Lewiston, Post Falls, Aid and Attendance, wartime priority.
For: Veteran or service member, spouse.
Where it applies
Written for the jurisdictions listed here.
- IdahoState
The Idaho Division of Veterans Services runs four state veterans homes, all skilled nursing facilities: Boise with 80 beds (including a 17-bed special care unit for Alzheimer's disease and related conditions), Pocatello with 66, Lewiston with 66, and Post Falls with 64. The Division's older State benefits page still describes a 131-bed Boise home with a 36-bed residential unit; the Boise home's own page gives the current 80 beds.
The placement matters. Boise serves the southwest, Pocatello the southeast, Lewiston the north central, and Post Falls the northern panhandle, which is closer to Spokane than to Boise.
The law. Idaho Code 66-901 makes the homes "homes for veterans discharged under honorable conditions by the government of the United States and the spouses of veterans eligible for admission", with a widow or widower admitted as the admission criteria allow, and requires every resident to be "a bona fide resident of this state" before admission. Section 66-907 leaves the admission criteria and the charges to the Division's administrator, with the advice of the Veterans Affairs Commission.
The Division's criteria. The homes' pages: "Applicants may be peacetime or wartime veterans, and their spouses, with wartime veterans receiving priority admission status. The total service time must be at least 90 days", with the discharge papers; applicants "must be unemployable as a result of age, illness, or disability"; "Applicants must apply for (or already be in receipt of) a VA pension, and Aid and Attendance. We will assist with the pension application"; and "Applicants must either be eligible and apply for Medicaid benefits, or pay the current maximum monthly charge." Spouses and widows are admitted for nursing care only, with proof of marriage. The pages call the discharge both "honorable" and "other than dishonorable"; the statute's words are "under honorable conditions", so a general discharge should not be turned away.
The pension requirement is worth more than it sounds: Aid and Attendance is a substantial monthly increase to a VA pension for a veteran who needs help with daily living, and the home helps file it.
Apply through the Division of Veterans Services (Central Support Office, 351 Collins Road, Boise, 208-780-1300) or the home itself, on the Idaho State Veterans Home Application for Admission.
Thresholds
| Gate | Rule |
|---|---|
| 90 days of service, a discharge under honorable conditions, Idaho residence and a nursing need | The gates are Idaho residence, a discharge under honorable conditions after at least 90 days of service, and a nursing need, with wartime veterans receiving priority and applicants required to apply for VA pension and Aid and Attendance and for Medicaid or pay the maximum charge. No disability rating is required for admission, so the rating filter never hides this benefit. |
Sources
- Idaho Division of Veterans Services, Veterans Homes (read 2026-10-23)Official
- Idaho Division of Veterans Services, Idaho State Veterans Home - Boise (application and eligibility; read 2026-10-23)Official
- Idaho Division of Veterans Services, Pocatello, Lewiston and Post Falls homes (read 2026-10-23)Official
- Idaho Code 66-901 (read 2026-10-23)Official
- Idaho Code 66-907 (read 2026-10-23)Official
Updated
Last updated .
What changed then:
- Eligibility rule “90 days of active duty, an honorable discharge, and a nursing need” renamed “90 days of service, a discharge under honorable conditions, Idaho residence and a nursing need”.
- Eligibility rule “90 days of service, a discharge under honorable conditions, Idaho residence and a nursing need” now reads: “The gates are Idaho residence, a discharge under honorable conditions after at least 90 days of service, and a nursing need, with wartime veterans receiving priority and applicants required to apply for VA pension and Aid and Attendance and for Medicaid or pay the maximum charge. No disability rating is required for admission, so the rating filter never hides this benefit.”
- Summary reworded.
- And 8 more changes.
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Disclaimer
VetTOC is not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs or the Department of Defense. Information is for reference only and is not an eligibility determination. Verify with VA, the relevant state or territory, or an accredited VSO.