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Texas Capital Chapter 1919 Austin, Texas
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BENEFITS
PURPLE HEART RECIPIENTS …are entitled to… ► Free VA Medical Care. If you have not already done so, you can present your proof of award of the Purple Heart and VA will register you for medical care in priority group 3 (same group as those with 10 and 20 percent service-connected disabilities). Enrollees receive free medical care, that is, without assessment of co-payments. The only cost, and that does not necessarily apply in all cases, is that Pharmacy prescriptions may require a co-payment. The current VA rate is $8 for each 30-day supply of a prescription medication. This medical benefit for Purple Heart recipients was enacted by Congress in 1999 and many who are eligible have not been made aware of it. All who have been relying on some other health care system should carefully compare what they have now against what the VA will provide. There is a potential here for some Purple Heart veterans to save many thousands of dollars in medical costs by signing up.
► Texas Purple Heart License Plates. If you do not register your car with Purple Heart Plates for only $3 per year, you are not only losing out on saving whatever money you have been paying for your regular license plates every year; but you also miss out on certain free parking privileges (see below).
► Free Transfer of Purple Heart Plates. You can transfer Purple Heart Plates to your newly purchased vehicle absolutely without fee by the state. Most car dealers do not know this and will automatically charge you $50 or more to transfer plates when you trade-in on a new car unless you bring it to their attention. In order to save the transfer fee you (or your car dealer) must use a “special plates” transfer form.
► To obtain forms. Call the Texas Department of Transportation (512) 374-5010 and go thru the “menu” of pressing buttons and you can get a customer service representative who will mail you the blank forms for obtaining Purple Heart plates and/or free Transfer of Purple Heart plates to a new vehicle. Also, the Vehicles Titles and Registration office that serves your local community will have them available.
► Free Parking Privileges apply for vehicles with Purple Heart license plates, but only when the Purple Heart recipient is driving or is being transported in the vehicle. Since March 1999, state law exempts vehicles with Purple Heart plates from having to pay parking fees normally charged at city, county, and state owned fee parking facilities, including at parking meters. Do not feed coins into the parking meter when you park your Purple Heart plated vehicle. Meter Maids know this and do not write parking tickets. Most large city airports in Texas also grant free parking to Purple Heart plated vehicles. In most cases you must claim the privilege at the toll booth and sign your name and plate number, but frequent flyers can often save big bucks for airport parking in Texas. If paying the parking fee could be a problem for you, and it’s your first time, better check with the airport first, some cities in Texas have been slow to extend this privilege. (Note: this does not apply to privately owned parking facilities, also, please be a good citizen and do not park in Handicap Parking spaces unless you have a PH handicap plate or display a Handicap Placard).
► Note: Do not forget that you are also entitled to many veterans benefits not associated with your Purple Heart, visit your County Veterans Service Officer to learn about them.
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Last Updated 4-10-2006 |
