Nursing home care is the costliest setting, and in Georgia many families watch savings drain in a year or less. When you bring in VA and Medicaid, and in what order, really matters.
Here’s how the pieces work in Georgia.
Who qualifies, including edge cases
Eligibility doesn’t change at the state line. VA asks for 90 days of active duty including at least one wartime day (24 months or the full call-up for most who joined after Sept. 7, 1980), a discharge that isn’t dishonorable, and net worth below $163,699 counting both assets and a year’s income, with a 36-month look-back on gifts123. In a nursing home, the medical piece is needing another person for daily activities or for safety, which the doctor records on VA Form 21-268045. Our national guide covers each rule in depth.
How Aid and Attendance helps in a nursing home
VA treats a veteran or surviving spouse living in a nursing home as needing Aid and Attendance8. The facility completes VA Form 21-0779, and the bill counts as an unreimbursed medical expense910. While paying privately, most residents’ care costs exceed their income, so they get the full $29,093 a year (single veteran) or $18,697 (surviving spouse)1112.
What a nursing home costs in Georgia
| Effective | Monthly rate | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| April 1, 2026 | $11,122 | Medicaid transfer-of-assets penalties |
| Before April 2026 | $10,798 | Same |
A statewide average set by the state, not a quote from any facility.
Source: Georgia DFCS Medicaid Policy Manual, Appendix A113
Against that, a single veteran’s $2,424 a month pays roughly a fifth of the average bill, so income and savings cover most of it until Medicaid starts1113. Compare facilities in Georgia nursing homes.
Georgia nursing home Medicaid rules
Georgia’s Medicaid program is run by the Department of Community Health, and the Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) decides eligibility. For nursing home care and the waiver programs, the 2026 income cap is $2,982 a month for one person, and countable resources must be $2,000 or less ($3,000 for a couple)13. Income at or above the cap doesn’t end the conversation: Georgia lets the applicant set up and fund a Qualified Income Trust, sometimes called a Miller trust14. When one spouse needs care, the spouse at home can keep up to $162,660 in resources in 2026, and DFCS can divert income up to a $4,066.50 monthly maintenance standard13.
Gifts made in the 60 months before applying can delay coverage under the federal Medicaid look-back15. DFCS sets the penalty by dividing the uncompensated value by Georgia’s average nursing home private-pay billing rate, which rose from $10,798 to $11,122 a month on April 1, 202613. That’s a state average used for penalties, not what any particular home charges.
The $90 rule and Georgia's allowance
If a veteran or surviving spouse with no spouse or dependent child is on Medicaid in a Medicaid-approved nursing home, federal law cuts the VA pension to $90 a month, and that $90 belongs to the resident rather than the nursing home16. Georgia’s manual handles it neatly: for a VA pensioner or surviving spouse with no dependents, DFCS uses $90 as the personal needs allowance, while other nursing home residents, including VA pensioners who have dependents, keep $70 a month. The rest of the resident’s income goes toward the bill as patient liability13.
A veteran with a spouse at home isn’t cut to $90. Georgia lets the community spouse keep up to $162,660 in resources and divert income up to a $4,066.50 monthly maintenance standard in 202613.
A Georgia worked example
A single Army veteran in Columbus has $3,150 a month from Social Security and a pension, and $55,000 saved. While he pays privately, VA pays the full $2,424 a month11. Because his income tops $2,982, he’ll need a Qualified Income Trust once his savings fall under $2,0001314. When Medicaid begins, his pension drops to $90, which DFCS lets him keep as his personal needs allowance1613.
Georgia's war veterans homes
| Home | Address | Size | Run by | Specialty care |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Georgia War Veterans Home, Milledgeville | 2249 Vinson Highway, Milledgeville 31061 | 248 beds on about 17 acres | HMR Veterans Services under contract with the state, from October 1, 2026 | Alzheimer's care, a sub-acute therapy unit and a Transitional Support Unit for mental and behavioral health |
| Georgia War Veterans Nursing Home, Augusta | 1101 15th Street, Augusta 30901 | 130 beds | Augusta University under an interagency agreement | Skilled nursing; a teaching home next to the Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center |
Source: Georgia Department of Veterans Service17181920
Both homes charge a nominal daily fee, and Aid and Attendance can help offset it; VA pays the whole fee for veterans rated 70% or more or admitted for a service-connected condition21. Residents still pay some costs, such as Medicare or insurance co-pays and transportation to outside appointments, under the application’s terms22. Ask each home for its current fee in writing. See Georgia’s state veterans homes.
Mistakes to avoid
How to apply
- Protect the start date. An intent to file (VA Form 21-0966) holds your effective date for a year while you gather papers2324.
- Have the doctor fill out Form 21-2680. In a nursing home, the facility uses Form 21-0779 instead59.
- Submit the claim. Form 21P-527EZ for veterans or 21P-534EZ for survivors, plus proof of income, assets and care costs256.
- Book a GDVS Veterans Service Officer. Find the Veterans Field Service Office assigned to your county on the GDVS locator and call ahead for an appointment. The department's main line is 404-656-23002621.
- Coordinate with the business office. Ask the social worker when to file the Medicaid application with DFCS.