What to Know About Military Death Benefits
Losing a family member is difficult, especially because there are unfortunate administrative tasks that must be accomplished to properly claim insurance and death benefit payments from private agencies and the federal government. What do you need to remember when faced with the loss of a family member or loved one? This article covers the financial benefits you may need to navigate in times of need.
The First Step Is Updating DEERS
The first and most important step is to update your entry in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS). DEERS is a central database for all military personnel and their families, containing current personal and family data relevant to military benefits.
An update to this system is required to begin any changes to your family’s health plan and other entitlements that require DEERS data.
To update the record, you must provide a copy of the death certificate to a base military ID card office. For families of active-duty members, a Casualty Assistance Officer (CAO) may be assigned to you depending on circumstances.
What Is a CAO?
According to the Defense Department’s official site, “To ensure that military families have support when a service member is declared deceased, missing, or whereabouts unknown, the Defense Department’s Casualty Assistance program assigns a dedicated casualty assistance officer to advise and assist the primary next of kin.”
DoD guidelines state that assistance officers may “be assigned to the parents of married service members, who are considered the secondary next of kin, if they are not the primary.”
The Department of Defense reaches out to the survivors of a military member who has died while serving, and assigns a CAO as part of that notification process. This process is for those currently serving. Retirees and veterans are not included, but may have similar options available from non-Department of Defense (DoD) sources.
TRICARE
If the military member on the TRICARE account, also known as the “sponsor,” dies, eligible family members do not lose health coverage. Their benefits transition to the TRICARE Survivor Plan. This plan offers coverage similar to TRICARE Select, allowing beneficiaries to see any TRICARE-authorized provider.
- Surviving spouses and children are covered under the Survivor Plan with costs based on what they paid under TRICARE Prime or TRICARE Select for the first three years. After three years, the costs will align with the rates for the retiree group.
- If the sponsor were a retiree, the Survivor Plan costs would be the same as those for TRICARE Select retiree plans.
- It is essential to review the specific costs and details of the Survivor Plan, as they may differ from those of your previous plan.
When a Spouse or Child Passes Away
If you are the sponsor and your covered spouse or child passes away, your TRICARE coverage is not affected, nor is the coverage for any other dependents enrolled under your plan. Your primary responsibility is to update DEERS.
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A Safety Net for Lost Coverage
Some family members may lose TRICARE eligibility following a death, such as a surviving spouse who remarries. For these situations, the Continued Health Care Benefit Program (CHCBP) is available. It provides temporary, premium-based health coverage for up to 36 months (depending on circumstances) after TRICARE eligibility ends. You must enroll within 60 days of losing TRICARE coverage.
Servicemembers’ and Veterans’ Group Life Insurance (SGLI/VGLI)
This is the life insurance policy for which the service member or veteran was enrolled. SGLI is for currently serving members, while VGLI is for veterans who choose to continue coverage after service.
- The designated beneficiary must complete the Claim for Death Benefits form (SGLV 8283). This form is available on the Department of Veterans Affairs website.
- For active-duty deaths, an assigned Casualty Assistance Officer will provide you with this form and assist you in completing and submitting it to the Office of Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance (OSGLI) for processing.
- For veterans, the beneficiary of a veteran with VGLI is responsible for obtaining and submitting the claim form.
Death Gratuity Payment
The DoD official site describes a one-time, non-taxable payment of $100,000 made to the next of kin of a service member who dies on active duty (or within 120 days of separation from the military) under specific circumstances. This process is automatic and expedited. You do not need to apply for it.
According to the DoD official site, “The death gratuity is the same regardless of the cause of death. The longstanding purpose of the death gratuity has been to provide immediate cash payment to assist survivors of deceased members of the Armed Forces to meet their financial needs during the period immediately following a member’s death and before other survivor benefits, if any, become available.”
Final Paycheck
This is the final payment of any money owed to the service member at the time of their death, including unpaid salary, unused leave, and other allowances.
- The Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) handles this payment. To claim it, the beneficiary must complete Standard Form 1174, Claim for Unpaid Compensation of Deceased Member of the Uniformed Services.
- A Casualty Assistance Officer will help you complete this form and submit it to DFAS. If no beneficiary was designated for this payment, the funds are distributed in a specific legal order of precedence (for example, the surviving spouse first, then the children, and then the parents).
>> Never miss a benefits update. Subscribe to the MyMilitaryBenefits Newsletter today.
About the author
Editor-in-Chief Joe Wallace is a 13-year veteran of the United States Air Force and a former reporter/editor for Air Force Television News and the Pentagon Channel. His freelance work includes contract work for Motorola, VALoans.com, and Credit Karma. He is co-founder of Dim Art House in Springfield, Illinois, and spends his non-writing time as an abstract painter, independent publisher, and occasional filmmaker.
