Two skilled nursing homes, at The Dalles with 151 beds and Lebanon with 154. Spouses and parents who lost a child in service are eligible alongside veterans, and a physician has to certify that skilled nursing care is needed.
Also called: veterans home, nursing home, skilled nursing, The Dalles, Lebanon, Edward C. Allworth, Gold Star parent, memory care, rehabilitation.
ODVA runs two veterans' homes. The Dalles opened in 1997 overlooking the Columbia Gorge and has 151 beds. The Edward C. Allworth Veterans' Home in Lebanon opened in 2014 with 154 beds.
Two homes for a state with roughly 260,000 veterans is thin coverage, and the placement leaves gaps. The Dalles serves the Gorge and central Oregon, Lebanon the mid-Willamette Valley. Neither is on the coast, in southern Oregon, or east of the Cascades beyond the Gorge, so a family in Medford, Bend, or Ontario is looking at a long drive. Ask about the waiting list early rather than at the point of crisis.
Eligibility is broader than the veteran alone. Care is available to veterans, their spouses, and parents who had a child die while serving in the U.S. Armed Forces. A qualifying veteran must have served as the federal VA defines service and received an honorable discharge.
The clinical gate is firm: a physician's recommendation that skilled nursing care is needed is required for admission to either home. These are nursing facilities, not retirement housing, and a veteran who is simply aging and wants supported living will not be admitted on that basis.
ODVA also applies conditions beyond the clinical one. An applicant has to be able to pay the resident's portion of the cost of care, if any, must not require medical care the home cannot provide, and must not have violent traits that could endanger themselves or others.
Services cover long-term care, Alzheimer's and other dementia-related care, and inpatient and outpatient rehabilitative care.
Cost depends on VA per diem, on what the resident's income and insurance cover, and on the level of care, so this entry does not print a daily rate. Contact the specific home for its current figure. Before assuming the family owes the difference, ask about VA pension with Aid and Attendance, which frequently covers a substantial part of a veteran's or surviving spouse's cost and which many families have never heard of. A County or Tribal Veteran Service Officer will file that claim free of charge.
Contact The Dalles at 541-296-7190 extension 52330, 700 Veterans Drive, The Dalles. Contact Lebanon at 541-570-7477, 600 North 5th Street, Lebanon.
Thresholds
Thresholds for Oregon Veterans' Homes
Gate
Rule
Honorable discharge and a physician’s recommendation
Admission requires service as the federal VA defines it, an honorable discharge, and a physician’s recommendation that skilled nursing care is needed, plus ability to pay the resident portion and a care need the home can meet. Spouses and parents of a child who died in service are eligible in their own right. No disability rating is required, so the rating filter never hides this benefit.
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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.