Family Coverage Options for Veterans: Health, Life Insurance and Survivor Benefits Explained

Almost every family benefit keys off 1 of 4 thresholds.

Source: https://www.va.gov/view-change-dependents/, https://www.va.gov/family-and-caregiver-benefits/health-and-disability/champva/ and https://www.va.gov/family-and-caregiver-benefits/health-and-disability/comprehensive-assistance-for-family-caregivers/, checked September 2026.

A 100% rating is not automatically P&T; VA has to mark it permanent before CHAMPVA opens. And 10% and 20% ratings carry no dependent add-on. The family benefits overview maps every program by relationship; this page is about choosing coverage.

VA health care enrollment covers only the veteran. Under 38 U.S.C. 1781 and 38 CFR 17.271, the family's VA program is the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA). A household has up to 6 possible sources of coverage.

CHAMPVA. For the spouse or child of a veteran rated P&T from a service-connected disability, or survivors of a veteran who died from one or was P&T at death. No premium. You pay a $50 per person ($100 per family) deductible each calendar year, then 25% of the CHAMPVA allowable amount, up to a $3,000 household cap. The CHAMPVA benefits guide covers claims and pharmacy rules.

TRICARE. The Department of Defense program. Its sponsors are "active duty, retired, and National Guard and Reserve members," and family members are spouses and children registered in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS). Retiree families can use TRICARE Prime, TRICARE Select, the Uniformed Services Family Health Plan, and TRICARE For Life once they have Medicare Part A and Part B. VA's rule: "If you're eligible for or enrolled in TRICARE, you can't get CHAMPVA benefits." A retiree's family stays on TRICARE even if the veteran is later rated P&T.

The caregiver route. If the veteran is rated 70% or higher, needs at least 6 months of continuous in-person personal care and is enrolled in VA health care, the family member approved as Primary Family Caregiver under the Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers (PCAFC) gets CHAMPVA for themselves, plus a stipend. This is the only way a spouse gets VA-funded coverage when the veteran is not P&T; children are not covered through it. The Program of General Caregiver Support Services (PGCSS) offers training and respite at any rating but no coverage or stipend.

Employer coverage. A job plan does not block CHAMPVA. You can hold both; the job plan pays first.

The Marketplace. HealthCare.gov says a veteran "may have dependents who aren't eligible for a VA health care program. They can get coverage through the Health Insurance Marketplace," and depending on income "may get lower costs on monthly premiums or out-of-pocket costs." Open Enrollment runs November 1 to January 15; losing other coverage, such as CHAMPVA after a divorce, opens a special enrollment window.

Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Free or low-cost coverage based on income, household size and other factors that vary by state. You can apply any time of year, through the Marketplace application or your state Medicaid agency.

Source: https://www.va.gov/resources/champva-care/, https://www.tricare.mil/Plans/Eligibility and https://www.healthcare.gov/veterans/, checked September 2026.

Watch out: CHAMPVA for a child ends at 18 unless the child is in school, and at 23 regardless. A child who ages out has a Marketplace special enrollment window, because losing coverage is a qualifying life event.

CHAMPVA sits behind almost everything else. VA's CHAMPVA care page states the rule in 1 sentence: "CHAMPVA is always the secondary payer except to these programs: Medicaid, State Victims of Crime Compensation Programs, Indian Health Services, Supplemental CHAMPVA policies." Everything not on that list, including a job plan, a Marketplace plan and Medicare, pays before CHAMPVA.

In practice:

1. Report every other plan on VA Form 10-7959c, the Other Health Insurance (OHI) Certification, when you apply and again whenever coverage changes. If you report late, VA reprocesses the claim and "you or your provider will need to pay us back the overpayment amount."
2. Your provider bills the other insurance first. CHAMPVA then considers what is left, up to the CHAMPVA allowable amount.
3. With Medicare, Medicare is primary. You must have Part A and Part B to keep CHAMPVA (a Medicare Advantage plan meets the rule), and "if you cancel Medicare Part B coverage, your eligibility for CHAMPVA benefits will end on the same day." You do not need Part D. The Medicare coordination guide covers the Part B premium and enrollment windows.
4. With Medicaid, CHAMPVA pays first and Medicaid picks up what is left, so a low-income P&T household can hold both.
5. With TRICARE, there is no coordination, because you cannot hold both. A retiree family with Medicare uses TRICARE For Life alongside Medicare Part A and Part B.

CHAMPVA counts as minimum essential coverage under the Affordable Care Act, so a family with CHAMPVA alone has met the coverage requirement.

While a member serves with full-time Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (SGLI), Family Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (FSGLI) covers the family.

Source: https://www.va.gov/life-insurance/options-eligibility/fsgli/, rates effective July 1, 2025.

Child coverage lasts to age 18, to 22 for a full-time student, or longer for a child permanently disabled before 18. A civilian spouse is enrolled automatically; the member manages amounts through milConnect (SGLV 8286A on paper). The spouse has 120 days after separation or divorce to convert to a permanent individual policy.

Is it worth keeping? At $4.00 a month for $100,000 for a spouse under 35, the cost is low. The trade-off is that it does not follow the family into civilian life. After separation, the veteran's own options are Veterans' Group Life Insurance (VGLI) and, with a service-connected rating, Veterans Affairs Life Insurance (VALife): up to $40,000 of guaranteed-acceptance whole life for veterans 80 or younger, with a 2-year waiting period and premiums that "will never increase." The spouse's replacement cover comes from the FSGLI conversion or the private market. The Family SGLI guide and the VA life insurance guide go deeper.

The family benefits overview covers these in full. The deciding numbers only:

Dependents on the veteran's compensation (30% and above). Effective December 1, 2025, a veteran rated 30% receives $552.47 a month alone, $617.47 with a spouse and $666.47 with a spouse and 1 child; at 100% the figures are $3,938.58, $4,158.17 and $4,318.99. Each additional child under 18 adds $32.00 at 30% and $109.11 at 100%. The veteran files VA Form 21-686c.

If the veteran dies. Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC), set by 38 U.S.C. 1311, pays a surviving spouse $1,699.36 a month plus $421.00 for each child under 18, effective December 1, 2025, when the death was service-connected or the veteran had a total rating for at least 10 years before death. It is tax-free and continues after remarriage at 55 or older on or after January 5, 2021. Survivors Pension is the needs-based alternative for wartime veterans' survivors, with a maximum annual rate of $11,699 for a surviving spouse with no dependents (December 1, 2025 to November 30, 2026). Both payments are claimed on VA Form 21P-534EZ; the DIC guide has the full tables.

Education. Chapter 35 (DEA) pays a child or spouse of a P&T veteran $1,574.00 a month for full-time study from October 1, 2025 to September 30, 2026, for up to 36 months (45 if training began before August 1, 2018). It is a cash payment, not free tuition, though many states add a tuition waiver. A serving member can also transfer Post-9/11 GI Bill months after 6 years of service with a 4-year commitment. See the Chapter 35 guide and the GI Bill guide.

States layer their own family benefits on the same thresholds. The most common are a property-tax exemption for the spouse or surviving spouse of a P&T veteran and a tuition waiver at public colleges for children and spouses of P&T or deceased veterans. Medicaid and CHIP income limits are also set state by state, so the same household can qualify in 1 state and not another. Select your state for the current list.

1. CHAMPVA: VA Form 10-10d, online or by mail to VHA Office of Community Care, CHAMPVA Eligibility, PO Box 137, Spring City, PA 19475, with VA Form 10-7959c if you have other insurance. You need the veteran's P&T rating letter (or death certificate), your marriage certificate and Social Security numbers. Questions: 800-733-8387, Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. ET.
2. Caregiver program: VA Form 10-10CG, filed jointly by veteran and caregiver, online, by mail or at a VA medical center. VA assigns the caregiver "no later than 90 days after we get your application."
3. Marketplace, Medicaid or CHIP: 1 application at HealthCare.gov screens for all 3. Marketplace plans need Open Enrollment or a life event; Medicaid and CHIP take applications year-round.
4. FSGLI: the member enrolls or changes amounts in milConnect (SGLV 8286A). A spouse converting after separation has 120 days.
5. Dependents on compensation: the veteran files VA Form 21-686c online or to the Evidence Intake Center, PO Box 4444, Janesville, WI 53547-4444.
6. DIC or Survivors Pension: VA Form 21P-534EZ, online or to the Pension Intake Center, PO Box 5365, Janesville, WI 53547-5365. Filing within 1 year of the death protects the effective date.

A VA-accredited representative can help with any VA form for free.

At what disability rating do family members start getting benefits?

At a combined rating of 30% the veteran gets extra monthly compensation for a spouse, children and dependent parents. CHAMPVA and Chapter 35 education benefits need a permanent and total (P&T) rating, and the caregiver stipend needs a rating of 70% or higher.

Does CHAMPVA cover the veteran too?

No. CHAMPVA covers eligible spouses, children and survivors only; the veteran uses VA health care. The 1 exception is a Primary Family Caregiver approved under the caregiver program, who can get CHAMPVA in their own right.

How much life insurance can a military spouse get?

Family SGLI covers a spouse for up to $100,000, never more than the member's own SGLI, and each dependent child for $10,000 at no cost. $100,000 costs a spouse under 35 $4.00 a month. The spouse has 120 days after the member separates to convert it.

What does a surviving spouse receive?

DIC of $1,699.36 a month (effective December 1, 2025) plus $421.00 per child under 18 if the death was service-connected, CHAMPVA, Chapter 35 education benefits, a home loan Certificate of Eligibility and burial benefits. The full list is in the survivor benefits guide.

How long does DEA Chapter 35 last?

36 months of benefits for anyone who began training on or after August 1, 2018, or 45 months for earlier starters. Full-time study pays $1,574.00 a month from October 1, 2025 to September 30, 2026.