Posted on May 9, 2019
GySgt Cortez Liggins
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My wife came back from the Gulf War and passed away because of Gulf War Illness. I did not receive SGLI because they stated (at the time) that there was no such thing. Now that they acknowledge it, do I still rate the SGLI insurance?
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LTC Jason Mackay
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Edited 5 y ago
Was your wife covered by SGLI at the time of her passing? I.e. Did she have an active policy? SGLI is just a term life insurance policy. You bet you'll die, they bet you won't for the term of the policy. Once the term is up, that's it. Only recently did they devised a bridge policy called VGLI. Which is exponentially expensive.

SGLI : https://www.benefits.va.gov/insurance/sgli.asp

I don't know if this fits your situation. https://www.benefits.va.gov/INSURANCE/resources_handbook_ins_chapter8.asp
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GySgt Cortez Liggins
GySgt Cortez Liggins
5 y
She was a reservist when she got orders. When she came back, she started getting sick and weak. She turned down reenlistment because of her weakness. Soon after, her body started deteriorating and after many emergency stays at base hospitals, she passed away. They told me that it was not service connected because their was no such thing call Gulf War illness.
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LTC Jason Mackay
LTC Jason Mackay
5 y
GySgt Cortez Liggins - if she was not covered by the term of SGLI at he time she passed, as I understand it, she isn't eligible. It's not whether it is service connected or not.

8.02 PROOF OF DEATH AND VERIFICATION OF INSURANCE IN FORCE
a. When a claim is filed for insurance, proof of death and verification of the amount of insurance in force will be established by one of the following types of evidence:
(1) If death of a member occurs while on active duty, active duty for training, inactive duty training or in an active duty status as a Ready Reservist/National Guard member, DD Form 1300, Report of Casualty, or its equivalent, will be issued by the deceased member's uniformed service and sent directly to the OSGLI. The beneficiary need not supply proof of death.
(2) If a member insured under full-time coverage dies within the period the insurance remains in force following termination of duty, a certified copy of the death certificate and a copy of DD 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, or Form NGB 22,Certificate of Release from the National Guard must accompany the form SGLV 8283 and be submitted to the OSGLI.
(3) If an insured under part-time coverage dies within the 120-day period following a period of duty during which a disability was incurred or aggravated, a certified copy of the death certificate and a statement from the attending physician concerning the disability and period of duty must be sent with the form SGLV 8283 to the OSGLI.
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GySgt Cortez Liggins
GySgt Cortez Liggins
5 y
Very unfortunate. Since then, I always encourage our military men and women to get an additional inexpensive term insurance policy just in case, because it appears that if you get injured during active duty, get an honorable discharge and then pass away from your active duty injuries, you are not covered.
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LTC Jason Mackay
LTC Jason Mackay
5 y
GySgt Cortez Liggins - I'm not an expert this is just what I could find. Perhaps a VSO can assist you in a claim with the VA.
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