Health care
Missouri Veterans Homes
Seven homes, and admission is an entitlement rather than a discretion for a Missouri citizen who meets the federal definition of veteran or holds an honorable Guard discharge. Spouses are not admitted, and the co-payment may never exceed the average cost of care.
Also called: 42.100, 42.105, 42.110, 42.121, veterans home, skilled nursing, entitled to admission, National Guard preference, spouse, average cost of care.
For: Veteran or service member.
Where it applies
Written for the jurisdictions listed here.
- MissouriState
Missouri operates seven veterans homes, at Cameron, Cape Girardeau, Mexico, Mount Vernon, St. James, St. Louis and Warrensburg, under section 42.100 and the Missouri Veterans' Commission.
Section 42.105 is unusually strong on its face. Citizens of the state of Missouri who meet the criteria established by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs for veteran status, or who have an honorable discharge from the National Guard, with preference given to the Missouri National Guard, and who require institutional health care services, "shall be entitled to admission into a Missouri veterans' home". That is an entitlement, not a discretion, and it is conditioned on three things only: Missouri citizenship, veteran status or an honorable Guard discharge, and a clinical need for institutional health care.
Three things are absent that most states in this catalog require. There is no wartime service requirement. There is no disability rating. And there is no minimum period of residency in Missouri before admission, unlike states that ask for a year or five years.
The Guard route is genuinely separate. A person with an honorable discharge from the National Guard qualifies whether or not that person ever served federal active duty and therefore whether or not VA would call them a veteran. Preference within that route goes to the Missouri National Guard rather than another state's.
Spouses are not admitted. Section 42.105 closes with a grandfather clause: no spouse of a qualified veteran shall be required to vacate the premises if the spouse was a resident of the home on August 28, 1989. The negative implication has been the practice ever since. A veteran's spouse cannot be admitted to a Missouri veterans home today, which is a material difference from the many states in this catalog that admit spouses, and it is the single most common wrong assumption about these homes.
Payment is means-linked but capped. Section 42.110 requires each resident who has a regular source of income or other financial means to make monthly payments by the tenth of the month to defray or partially defray the cost of maintaining residence. The amount is determined by the executive director with the approval of the commission, taking into consideration the resident's income or other financial means and the cost of the care provided, and "no charge to any resident shall be more than the averaged cost of the care provided". The average-cost ceiling is the protection: a resident with means pays toward the cost of care and never more than the home's average.
Money follows the resident into a protected fund. Section 42.121 puts all moneys received by the homes from any source into the Missouri Veterans' Homes Fund, which with all interest is maintained solely for the use of the homes, does not lapse into general revenue at the end of the biennium, and is exempt from the ordinary sweep in section 33.080. Section 42.127 directs the homes to participate in the federal per diem grant programme.
The capital side is funded elsewhere and precariously, which is described in its own entry: section 42.300 lets the Veterans Commission Capital Improvement Trust Fund pay for construction, maintenance, renovation and equipment needs of the homes, and lets money be transferred from that fund to the Missouri Veterans' Homes Fund as necessary to maintain the solvency of the fund. That transfer authority exists because the operating fund has needed it.
Thresholds
| Gate | Rule |
|---|---|
| A citizen of Missouri meeting the federal definition of veteran | Section 42.105 applies the criteria established by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs or its successor for veteran status. There is no wartime requirement, no rating and no minimum period of Missouri residency. |
| Or an honorable discharge from the National Guard | Section 42.105 gives an independent route to a person with an honorable National Guard discharge, with preference given to the Missouri National Guard, whether or not the person ever served federal active duty. |
| Requires institutional health care services | Section 42.105 conditions admission on the applicant requiring institutional health care services. The homes provide skilled nursing care, not independent living. |
| Admission is an entitlement, not a discretion | Section 42.105 says a qualifying person "shall be entitled to admission", which is stronger drafting than most state veterans home statutes in this catalog. |
| Spouses are not admitted | Section 42.105 protects only a spouse who was a resident of a home on August 28, 1989 from being required to vacate. There is no provision admitting a spouse today, which differs from many states. |
| A resident with income pays monthly, never more than the average cost of care | Section 42.110: the executive director sets the amount with the commission’s approval, considering the resident’s income or other financial means and the cost of care, and no charge may exceed the averaged cost of the care provided. |
Sources
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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.