Congressman Filner, I don't know who else to correspond with concerning this issue, but I find myself a frustrated veteran with it appears an insolvable issue. I am service connected at 100% for PTSD which makes me uninsurable thru commercial insurance companies for life or mortgage insurance. I am also 60% service connected for Coronary Artery Disease which also makes me uninsurable thru any company, due to the stroke and 7 heart attacks and the failed triple by pass surgery, I am also SC at 10% for hypertension. No insurance company will write life insurance for me or any other veteran in my medical situtation.
I am grateful to the VA for the free 10,000 dollar life insurance they waived the premiuims for and then allowed me to purchase another 20,000 life insurance which is the maximum allowed currently by law.
Congressman Filner, when this was passed in 1956 under the changes in VA regulations under then General Omar Bradley 30,000 dollars was a lot of money and would pay for the veterans funeral and pay off the family home, and leave a small amount left besides the DIC payments the spouse and children would continue receiving.
However, in 2009, this amount would not pay off anyone's home, in some cases not even mobile homes as most of them cost more than this. I do not live an expensive lifestyle, I think it is just a "normal middle class lifestyle", we owe 168,000 on our home, we made a 20% down payment, we did not purchase it as a sero down VA loan, we bought it thru our bank at regular mortgage loans. We have a fixed rate 30 year loan, no extravagant or strange loan. We have lived well within out income, we even manage to save money from our VA Compensation and SSD.
However when I do pass away, my family will be forced to sell this home, as the DIC payments and reduced SSD benefits will not cover the mortgage, utility bills and living expenses.
I know the government raised the life insurance for active duty military from 20,000 dollars to 400,000 dollars if the member dies on active duty, which with inflation is a dollar amount that enables the surviving spouse to pay off the home and continue their life.
Disabled veterans should deserve the same treatment, no we should not get 400,000 dollars, but it seems it would be apppropriate if the Congress would allow 100% disabled veterans to purchase additional life insurance from the government up to 100,000 or even 50,000, or maybe make mortgage insurance available to all 100% veterans, since we are prohibited from buying it from the "free market" veterans are being discriminated against, and I realize the Congress can NOT force private companies to sell us mortgage insurance or life insurance, but Congress can make these type of policies available thru the Veterans Administration, and I am sure other veterans like myself would be more than willing to pay fair market value for these products, if Congress would make them available.
Congressman Filner, after almost 60 years, it is time to make insurance amounts available to disabled veterans equal to what is needed to provide for their families, none of us want to leave our families "rich" but we would like enough to make them secure, like anyone else, yet our service connected medical problems prevent this, can you help us?
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
it is time to raise life insurance and allow mortgage insurance for disabled veterans
