For Your Benefit
For and about Hawaii's military
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Evidence needed for VA benefits for diabetes
Question: How does a veteran qualify for Department of Veterans Affairs disability compensation for diabetes?
Answer: To qualify for VA disability compensation, most veterans must have a diagnosis of diabetes and evidence that it began or was aggravated during active duty or within one year of release from duty. VA currently is paying disability compensation to more than 70,000 veterans with diabetes, many of them Vietnam veterans.
In 2001, veterans who served in Vietnam and later developed adult-onset (Type 2) diabetes became eligible for disability compensation on a presumption that the condition is connected to their military service. This presumptive policy is an outgrowth of research into the potential effects of Agent Orange.
More information on diabetes can be found at www1.va.gov/diabetes. If you need information on obtaining disability compensation for this disease, contact the VA at (800) 827-1000.
Q: I have a VA home loan that is closing. Are closing costs required to be paid in cash or made part of the loan?
A: Payment in cash is required on all closing costs, including title search and recording fees, hazard insurance premiums and prepaid taxes. For refinancing loans, all such costs may be included in the loan, as long as the total loan does not exceed 90 percent of the reasonable value of the property. Interest rate reduction loans may include closing costs and a maximum of two discount points. All loans, except those made to disabled veterans and unmarried surviving spouses of veterans who died as a result of service, are charged a VA funding fee. This fee is based on the loan amount and may be included in the loan. For additional information on VA home loans, contact the VA at (800) 827-1000.
If you have questions about your benefits as a veteran, call Fred Ballard at the Veterans Affairs at 433-0049 or visit the VA Web site at
www.va.gov/hawaii or the Star-Bulletin at 529-4747.