VA pays Dependency and Indemnity Compensation to surviving spouses, children, and parents. The surviving spouse of a veteran may qualify for this compensation if the veteran died on or after January 1, 1957, (1) from a service-connected disability, or (2) after being rated as totally disabled due to service-connected conditions for a continuous period of 10 years, or for at least 5 continuous years after discharge from military service. The surviving spouse of a servicemember qualifies for this compensation if the servicemember died while on active duty. Some children aged 18 and older may receive separate DIC payments if they are in school or are unable to care for themselves. Parents may receive these benefits if they were dependent on the veteran or servicemember for financial support. Veterans, servicemembers, and federal employees may receive disability benefits from various sources including VA, DOD, and the Social Security Administration. These disability benefits terminate upon the death of the disabled person. Veterans may receive disability compensation payments through VA. A veteran’s qualification for, and amount of, disability compensation is not dependent on the veteran’s military rank or current income. If a veteran has one or more service-connected disabilities—conditions incurred or aggravated by military service—VA assigns a disability rating. This rating is intended to represent the average earnings loss the veteran would experience in civilian occupations due to the disabling conditions. Ratings range from 0 to 100 percent, in 10 percent increments. Basic monthly payments for a veteran with a spouse range from $123 for a 10 percent rating to $2,823 for a 100 percent rating (i.e., totally disabled or unemployable). A veteran rated at 60 to 90 percent also can receive VA compensation at the 100 percent level if also determined to be unable to work. The veteran may receive additional compensation if he or she meets certain other criteria; for example, loss of a limb or requiring assistance in performing the functions of everyday living. For a veteran with a spouse, total compensation may be as much as $7,800 per month. DOD also provides disability retirement payments to servicemembers who are separated from service because they are unfit to continue to serve, provided that their disabilities were incurred in the line of duty. Some veterans may receive disability retirement pay and VA disability compensation simultaneously; for example, if their VA disability rating is 50 percent or higher. In addition, servicemembers who are enrolled in the military’s life insurance program, Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance (SGLI), may also receive financial assistance for certain losses resulting from certain traumatic injuries. Disabled servicemembers receive lump-sum payments, ranging from $25,000 to $100,000, depending upon the nat the qualifying loss. Disability benefits for federal employees are provided through their retirement and workers’ compensation programs, and payment amounts are generally tied to the employee’s salary. The Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) generally covers employees who began federal employment prior to 1984. The Federal Employees’ Retirement System (FERS), established to eventually replace CSRS, generally covers federal employees who began their term of employment in 1984 or later. The Federal Employees’ Compensation Act (FECA) provides the workers’ compensation program for federal employees who suffer injuries or illnesses while on the job, or whose preexisting conditions are aggravated by their jobs. An eligible employee may elect to receive disability retirement benefits under CSRS or FERS instead of under FECA, but cannot receive both. Additionally, servicemembers and federal employees are eligible for Social Security disability benefits. As part of its Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance program, the Social Security Administration pays Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits to individuals who are unable to work. To be eligible for SSDI, an individual must have a condition that will last at least one year or will result in death, and meet certain age and work requirements, which may include military service. SSDI benefit amounts are calculated on average earnings indexed to national wage levels. SSA also pays Supplemental Security Income (SSI) to qualifying adults with limited income and resources who have disabilities or are blind, or are age 65 or older, and to children who have disabilities or are blind. In addition to DIC benefits, survivors of servicemembers and veterans can receive cash payments and other types of benefits. DOD provides a lump sum death gratuity of $100,000 to the survivors of a servicemember who dies on active duty or in training, or due to a service-related disability. DOD also provides up to $8,800 for burial expenses. The deceased may have had Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance (SGLI) coverage, which can pay surviving family members a lump sum of up to $400,000. A surviving spouse and children may also receive monthly payments after the death of an active duty or retired servicemember through the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP). These payments equal 55 percent of the servicemember’s retirement pay. In addition to cash payments, survivors may also be eligible for health care, housing assistance, and education benefits. Survivors of federal employees can receive benefits through retirement programs, workers’ compensation, and life insurance. CSRS provides benefits to the surviving spouses of retired employees. The maximum CSRS survivor benefit is 55 percent of the retired employee’s monthly payment. CSRS also provides payments to the survivors of covered employees who die while employed, with survivors receiving a percentage of the employee’s calculated retirement annuity. FERS offers similar survivor benefits, but the maximum is 50 percent of the retired employee’s monthly payment. Under FECA, the federal workers’ compensation program, benefits may be provided to the survivors of federal civilian employees who die as a result of work-related injuries and illnesses. Payment amounts are based on the deceased’s last salary and, unlike other federal employee programs, FECA provides additional benefits to the spouse for dependent children. A surviving spouse is eligible to receive 50 percent of the deceased’s salary, or 45 percent plus 15 percent for each dependent child, up to a maximum of 75 percent. Survivors of federal employees who die of a work-related injury or disease may receive benefits under either FECA or the employee’s retirement program, CSRS or FERS, but if eligible for more than one benefit, survivors typically choose the more generous FECA benefit. FECA benefits are not subject to federal income taxes. Survivors also may receive a lump sum benefit from the employee’s Federal Employees’ Group Life Insurance policy. Survivors may also collect Social Security benefits through the Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance program. These benefits are paid to the surviving spouse, children, and dependent parents of any worker with a qualifying work history, including military servicemembers and federal employees under FERS. Survivor benefits may also be paid to the survivors of veterans and some CSRS-covered federal employees, if the veteran or federal employee had sufficient Social Security earnings credits. For the surviving spouse, eligibility for full benefits may occur at the spouse’s normal retirement age, while partial benefits can be paid as early as age 60. Also, a surviving spouse can receive survivor benefits at any age if caring for a child who is receiving Social Security benefits and is younger than age 16 or disabled. Unmarried children may receive benefits if they are under age 18. For more than half the survivors who began collecting benefits in fiscal years 2004-2008, DIC replaced between 35 and 55 percent of the VA disability compensation or military pay previously paid to the veteran or servicemember. Most of the DIC recipients in this group survived a totally disabled veteran or a low- to mid-grade enlisted servicemember, such as an Army sergeant. Overall, the most common DIC recipient was a woman over the age of 50 with no minor children who was the widow of a In this most common case, the totally disabled totally disabled veteran. veteran would have received $2,823 per month in VA compensation in 20 and, after his death, the surviving spouse would have received $1,154 month—the basic flat-rate DIC payment—for a replacement rate of 41 percent. Under DIC, survivors receive benefits without regard to the veteran’s or servicemember’s prior income. This prior income can include VA disability compensation and military pay, which cease upon the death of the veteran or servicemember. Because DIC benefits are generally paid at the same flat rate, the replacement rate depends upon the amount of prior income. While survivors of 6 out of 10 veterans and servicemembers received 35 percent to 55 percent of prior compensation, there are examples of DIC recipients at both ends of the replacement scale (see fig. 3). On the low end of the replacement scale, for about 1 of 10 survivors DIC replaced less than 35 percent of the veteran’s prior disability compensation or the servicemembers’ military pay. Many were survivors of veterans who received special compensation in addition to disability compensation due to the seriousness of the disability, for example, the loss of a limb. Some of the survivors of these veterans experienced a large drop in monthly compensation. For example, a severely disabled veteran could receive as much as $7,800 per month in disability and special compensation prior to death, but the surviving spouse would receive $1,400 per month in DIC, or 18 percent of the prior amount (see fig. 4). Another group which sees a large drop is survivors of higher ranked servicemembers, such as officers. DIC’s flat rate replaces less of their military pay than it does for servicemembers in lower pay grades. A Navy lieutenant, for example, earned about $6,000 per month in 2009.