Can a veteran's hospital garnish Social Security income?

Answer 1

Collection Laws and Social SecurityThe answer is no. No ordinary entity, be it a public or private organization, is permitted by law to garnish any monies due to an individual from the Social Security Administration.

Social Security can only be garnished:

- for child support or alimony.

- for court-ordered victim restitution.

- to collect unpaid federal taxes or other debts to the government.

Answer 2

Unfortunately, yes. The Treasury Department (not the hospital itself) can garnish up to 15% of your monthly Social Security check to satisfy outstanding debt to the VA health care system, because it is part of the federal government. They can not reduce your monthly benefit below $750 per month.

You may be able to file a hardship waiver to prevent the garnishment (if they take that action), but the protected income threshold is pretty low.

If you haven't already done so, contact a Veterans Service Officer through one of your local Veteran's Service Organizations (e.g., Vietnam Veterans of America, VFW, AmVets, Department of Veteran's Services, etc.) for assistance. You may want to talk to one of the non-governmental Veteran's groups (like Vietnam Veterans of America) before approaching Veteran's Affairs -- fellow ex-service members are often better advocates than government employees.

Don't tackle this alone; VSO services are free and effective.