If you served in the military at any point during wartime and are receiving a disability pension, you can estimate your unreimbursed medical (UME) expenses on a simple form and have the amount that is over and above your disability income.

You can be reimbursed for UME and have a home of any value or a car worth up to $30,000.

UME can include the cost of medical insurance premiums, out-of-pocket copayments and deductibles, medical transportation to and from doctor's offices and pharmacies - and similar expenses for non-disabled membres of the veteran's household. The estimate will usually suffice; receipts are not required for submission of the UME.

Here's an example: A vet has an overall disability income of $1000/month, including his $575 VA pension. His UME is $2500/month for himself and his child. He would get an additional payment of $1500/month.

Let's take another example. A vet receiving disability income of $574 a month otherwise wouldn't bother to apply for his $1 VA pension. But if he has UME expenses of $1501/month, he could get this payment by simply submitting a UME budget along with his pension application - making it worth his while to apply.

Disabled Persons May Claim Tax Credit

Disabled persons or people caring for disabled persons may be eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) because of the way it is calculated.

In figuring out the EITC social security income is not taken into account, but group and private disability payments are. As long as these payments are below $9000 for an individual or $23,755 for an individual caring for one other qualifying person, EITC eligibility is certain.

For an individual to get the EITC, there must be at least $1 of income, which can be disability payments, salary, or self-employment income. The credit peaks at $306 for people with $4050-4950 of income. Remember: social security payments aren't countable. And it is possible to earn income while on social security under its "Trial Work Period" provisions.

Of particular interest to the HIV community is that the qualifying person being cared for can be a "foster child/person" placed by any private or public social agency; the IRS EITC booklet also defines eligible foster children as people who were cared for by another as if they were their own. This could include a person who disabled because of HIV. Since it is sometimes quite possible to request this kind of placement from social agencies, this means that the EITC is within reach of caregivers.

Likewise if a disabled person with HIV moves back home, a disabled adult counts as a child. The parent can disregard the disabled adult's income, no matter how high; the disabled adult's tax return is done independently, apart.

If you think you might qualify under these provisions, ask the IRS for publication 596. You can also ask the IRS to give you an opinion about whether your particular circumstances apply.