What is Veterans' Home Care?
Veterans' Home Care is a Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA) program designed to assist those veterans and war widows or widowers who wish to continue living at home, but who need a small amount of practical help.

Veterans’ Home Care is part of a broader Australian Government strategy to ensure veterans and war widows or widowers maintain optimal health, well-being and independence. Veterans’ Home Care services include domestic
assistance, personal care, respite care, and safety-related home and garden maintenance.

• Safety-related home and garden maintenance: may include tasks such as replacing light bulbs and tap washers or other tasks that you and the service provider agree upon. The focus of home and garden maintenance services is to assist in keeping the home safe and habitable by minimising environmental health and safety hazards that may impact on you in and around your home.

Home and garden maintenance does not include major home repairs such as gutter replacement, landscaping and garden tasks such as branch lopping, tree felling or tree removal. Nor does it include routine, cosmetic or ornamental gardening services such as maintenance of flowerbeds and pruning of roses, unless there is a safety hazard. You will be responsible for the cost of materials required and any additional costs associated with providing the service, such as hire of special equipment or removal of
large quantities of rubbish. Where additional costs are involved, payment arrangements should be agreed between yourself and the service provider before work commences.

• respite care: temporary relief provided to your carer or to you if you are a carer.

Assessment for services
Access to services is not automatic. If you are eligible, you must be assessed as needing home care assistance before receiving these services.
Personal circumstances may be considered when your need for a service is being assessed.

Who is eligible to be assessed to receive services?
To be assessed for Veterans' Home Care services you must be:
• a veteran of the Australian defence forces, or
• a war widow or widower of a veteran of the Australian defence forces,
and have:
• a Repatriation Health Card—for All Conditions (Gold Card) or
• a Repatriation Health Card—for Specific Conditions (White Card).

Services for veterans of Commonwealth and Allied forces
If you are a Commonwealth or Allied veteran and you have a White Card you are eligible to be assessed for respite care. You are not eligible for other Veterans' Home Care services through DVA, but you may receive similar services under the HACC program.

Services for Australian participants in the British nuclear tests program
If you were accepted as an Australian participant in the British nuclear tests program and you have a White Card, you are eligible to be assessed for respite care in an Australian Government-funded residential aged care facility, where it only relates to the testing and treatment of malignant cancer (neoplasia). You are not eligible for any other Veterans’ Home Care services through DVA, but you may receive similar services under the HACC program.

Services for partners and carers
If you are an eligible person, your partner or carer can receive respite care if they care for you. They are not eligible for Veterans' Home Care services unless they have their own Gold or White Card. However the needs of the household are considered as part of the assessment process. Services may have a flow-on benefit to partners and carers to assist them in their caring role. Partners and carers may be eligible for HACC services.

VHC services and copayments
You will be asked to pay a small fee to service providers for home care services, other than respite care.
There is no change to payment arrangements for any other health services that you may receive from DVA as part of your health treatment entitlement.

• Personal care: $5 per hour to a maximum of $10 per week
• Domestic assistance: $5 per hour to a maximum of $5 per week
• Home and garden maintenance: $5 per hour for each hour of service
• Respite care: no copayment applies