Minnesota Dental, Optical, Relief and Disaster Grants for Veterans

Alongside subsistence, the State Soldiers Assistance Program runs four smaller activities under Minnesota Rules chapter 9055. All of them are means tested against the same schedule, and none of their amounts appears in the statute or the rule. Dental and optical. On approval the commissioner must provide needed dental and optical care to a veteran and the veteran's dependents. An applicant must be a veteran, the surviving spouse of a veteran, or the authorised representative of a surviving dependent, and must be under the maximum monthly household income and household asset limits published for the dental and optical activity. The mechanics matter more than the headline amount. The commissioner establishes a benefit period of at most 150 calendar days during which the recipient may receive treatment, and issues an authorisation letter naming the first and last days of the period, the maximum benefit amounts, and the authorised provider. The recipient may receive treatment only from the provider named on the current authorisation letter, and the commissioner may only authorise Minnesota providers. A recipient who has not started treatment before the period ends must reapply from the beginning. Extensions exist but must be asked for. A recipient may request an extension to complete treatment begun before the final day, through a county veterans service officer, a department field operations claim representative or a Tribal veterans service officer, in writing, within 30 days after the period ended. The commissioner must extend where a medical condition prevents treatment, where required wait times between procedures intervene, where the authorised provider has no appointments available, or on unforeseen circumstances. That list is mandatory, not discretionary, and appointment unavailability at the assigned provider is an accepted ground. The veteran's relief grant is a once-per-lifetime benefit and the rule says so four different ways. A veteran is authorised one. A surviving spouse is authorised one if the veteran did not receive one while living. A reserve member called to extended federal active duty is authorised one while on active duty and is not eligible for a second after release, separation or discharge. And a veteran married to another veteran is eligible for one between them, and is not eligible for a second later as that veteran's surviving spouse. Where a grant is approved or partially approved and payment has been made for any item, eligibility is exhausted, so a small approved claim spends the whole entitlement. The grant covers items and expenses, including work and services by vendors and contractors, directly related to meeting an applicant's basic needs or preventing the loss of a basic need, and items and expenses that further the applicant's financial self-sufficiency. The applicant must submit a written statement explaining the circumstances and including a plan for attaining financial self-sufficiency, and the commissioner must confirm the applicant has a legal obligation to pay for the items. Payment goes to the vendors the applicant names. The Voucher Deposit Assistance Program under rule 9055.0330 helps a veteran or surviving spouse obtain permanent housing, and the disaster relief grant under rule 9055.0340 is available to veterans and surviving spouses living in an area the governor has declared a state of emergency. On the figures: rule 9055.0315 incorporates by reference a schedule of maximum monthly allowances updated and published by the commissioner each January, carrying both the income and asset limits and the benefit amounts for every activity. Published annual maximums for dental care, dentures, extractions and eyewear come from that schedule and change without any legislative act. Get the current schedule from a county veterans service officer before planning around a number. Applications run through a county or Tribal veterans service officer or MDVA field operations, and section 197.604 makes it unlawful for a county veterans service officer to receive any fee for the help.