In eBenefits, apply using the Veterans On-line Application (VONAPP) to complete and submit your application online. You can also submit a paper application. To do this, download and complete VA Form 22-1990, Application for VA Education Benefits and mail it to a VA Regional Processing Office.
But such care can be expensive, costing upward of $10,000 a month, according to the Health Affairs study. That puts hospices in a financial bind. Last year, the Medicare program paid a base rate of $151 per day to cover all routine hospice services, adjusted for geographic differences.
But the average length of stay in a hospice fell from an average of 90 days in 1990 to 48 days in 1999, according to the IOM. Half of Medicare hospice users received care for 19 days or less, the General Ac-.