Mississippi State Veterans Homes: Who Qualifies, Cost, How to Apply

Mississippi's State Veterans Homes charge a veteran $75 a day at Collins, Jackson, Kosciusko or Oxford and $85 a day at Tradition, per the state's 2026 admission packets.1 For a veteran with a service-connected rating of 70% or more, MSVA's 2026 packet for the Collins, Jackson, Kosciusko and Oxford homes lists no charge for a double room, in line with the federal rule that VA's payment is payment in full for that veteran's nursing home care.1,2

If your father or your husband needs more care than the family can give at home, the veterans home is often the first place someone suggests. Mississippi Veterans Affairs (MSVA) runs five State Veterans Homes, in Collins, Jackson, Kosciusko, Oxford and at Tradition in Biloxi, providing skilled long-term care for eligible veterans and their spouses.3 MSVA doesn't post those prices on its website; they sit inside the admission packets. Here is what the packets and MSVA's own pages say about getting in, paying, and waiting for a bed.

In This Guide

• Key Takeaways
• Mississippi's Five State Veterans Homes
• Who Qualifies for a Mississippi State Veterans Home?
• What a Mississippi State Veterans Home Costs
• When VA Pays the Whole Bill
• Hospital Stays and Time Away From the Home
• How to Apply, Step by Step
• How MSVA's Waiting List Works
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Learn More

Mississippi's Five State Veterans Homes

State Veterans Homes are owned, operated and managed by state governments, not by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. VA recognizes and certifies each State Veterans Home, surveys it every year, and leaves eligibility and admission rules to the state.1 In Mississippi that state agency is MSVA, and it says it serves approximately 600 veterans at its Collins, Jackson, Kosciusko and Oxford homes.3

The addresses and phone numbers above are the ones on MSVA's Veterans Homes page. The U.S. Army's myArmyBenefits page for Mississippi lists the Kosciusko home as the Brigadier General Martha Jo Leslie home and the Jackson home as the General Hilton R. "Jack" Vance home, so you may see those names too.3 MSVA's main office is in the War Memorial Building, 120 North State Street, Jackson, MS 39201, phone (601) 576-4850.3

MSVA describes all five Mississippi homes as providing skilled long-term care.3 MSVA's pages don't say whether a particular home has a secured dementia unit or a lower level of care, so ask the home's admissions staff directly. For the wider picture of VA help for an older Mississippi veteran, see our guide to VA senior care benefits in Mississippi, and for how state homes work across the country, see how State Veterans Homes work.

Who Qualifies for a Mississippi State Veterans Home?

Each state writes its own admission rules for its State Veterans Homes.1 MSVA says a veteran or spouse must meet these requirements to live in a Mississippi State Veterans Home:3

• Service and discharge. The veteran must have been on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces and must not have been discharged under dishonorable conditions, with a DD-214 or equivalent report of separation as proof.
• Or the spouse of a current resident. A spouse can qualify for a Mississippi State Veterans Home only as the spouse of a veteran who is currently a resident of one.
• Mississippi residency. The applicant must be or have been a Mississippi resident, though a non-resident may be admitted if no Mississippi resident is waiting for admission.
• A physician's examination within 30 days of admission showing the applicant has no communicable disease, doesn't need medical or hospital care the home isn't equipped or staffed to provide, and has no traits that may prove dangerous to themselves, other residents or employees.

The middle condition of that exam is the one families run into. MSVA's level-of-care test means a Mississippi State Veterans Home can decline a veteran whose care needs go beyond what that home is staffed for, so talk with the home about your father's needs before you send the packet.3

MSVA's admission packet adds a limit on the non-resident exception: a veteran who lives in another state may fill a vacant bed in a Mississippi State Veterans Home only up to a total of 98% occupied beds, only when no Mississippi resident is on the active waiting list or ready to enter, and the cost of that veteran's care is at no expense to the State of Mississippi.4

What a Mississippi State Veterans Home Costs

MSVA publishes its charges in the admission packets, one for the four older homes and a separate one for Tradition, both updated June 9, 2026.1

MSVA's admission packet for the Collins, Jackson, Kosciusko and Oxford homes says the daily charge at those Mississippi State Veterans Homes includes comprehensive medical care (staff, doctors and medications), nursing care, laundry, and room and board.1 MSVA's packets date the $75 and $85 daily veteran rates at the Mississippi State Veterans Homes to July 1, 2024, and the packet for the four older homes dates the $215 daily spouse rate to June 9, 2023.1

The spouse line is the one that surprises families. VA's State Veterans Home payments help defray the cost of care provided to veterans, and VA does not pay for care for non-veterans such as a veteran's spouse.1 If your mother would move in too, her $215-a-day charge at a Mississippi State Veterans Home is a bill your family carries with no VA help, so work it into the budget before either of them moves.1

The money also comes due fast. On move-in day a Mississippi State Veterans Home collects the comprehensive care charge for the rest of that month in advance, and after that the charge is due by the 10th of every month.1 MSVA's rules say failure to pay or repeated late payment may result in dismissal from the home, so a missed payment can put your father's bed at risk.1 If your parent may qualify for VA pension with Aid and Attendance, our guide to using that benefit toward a Mississippi nursing home walks through the claim.

VA also pays the state a per diem toward an eligible veteran's care. VA's basic State home per diem is the lesser of half the daily cost of care or VA's basic per diem rate for the year, and 38 U.S.C. 1741 caps it at half the cost of care.2 That money goes to the State of Mississippi, not to your family.

When VA Pays the Whole Bill

For some veterans the bill is very different. Under 38 U.S.C. 1745 and 38 CFR 51.41, VA's payment to a State home for nursing home care is payment in full, and the home may not charge anyone other than VA for that care, when any one of these is true of the veteran:2

• The veteran needs nursing home care for a VA-adjudicated service-connected disability.2
• The veteran has a service-connected disability rated 70% or more and needs nursing home care.2
• The veteran is rated for total disability based on individual unemployability (TDIU) and needs nursing home care.2

MSVA's charge schedule reflects that federal rule for nursing home care: the packet for the Collins, Jackson, Kosciusko and Oxford homes lists no charge for a veteran rated 70% or more service-connected in a double room, and $300 a month for a single room.1 MSVA's Tradition packet lists the $300-a-month single room for that veteran but has no double-room line, so ask the Tradition home in writing what a double room would cost your father.1 Bring the VA rating decision letter to the first conversation with any Mississippi home.

If your parent is covered by Medicaid in a nursing home, one federal rule is worth knowing. Under 38 U.S.C. 5503(d), VA pension for a veteran with no spouse or child who is covered by Medicaid in a nursing facility is capped at $90 a month after the month of admission, and that section's definition of nursing facility excludes a State home receiving VA's section 1741(a) per diem, so the $90 cap does not apply to a veteran in that setting.5 Ask the home and an MSVA Veteran Service Officer how your parent's VA pension and Mississippi Medicaid would be handled at that specific Mississippi home.

Hospital Stays and Time Away From the Home

Two MSVA rules change the bill when a resident is away from a Mississippi State Veterans Home.

Hospital stays. Under MSVA's rules, a veteran pays the current daily resident charge to hold a bed in a Mississippi State Veterans Home for up to 14 consecutive nights in a VA or other hospital. A resident hospitalized for more than 14 consecutive days is discharged from the Mississippi home, then given priority placement within the State Veterans Homes after leaving the hospital.1

Visits home and other passes. Under MSVA's rules, a veteran away on pass for more than 12 days in a calendar year pays, starting on the 13th day, the regular daily charge plus the current daily VA per diem rate for each day away. MSVA's charge page puts the extra amount for a non-medical pass beyond 12 days at $144.10 a day.1 At a Mississippi State Veterans Home, MSVA charges nothing to hold the bed for the first 12 days of pass in a calendar year for a veteran covered by the same three VA ratings listed under When VA Pays the Whole Bill (a veteran who needs nursing home care and who needs it for a service-connected disability, is rated 70% or more, or has TDIU).1 Plan long holiday visits with that 12-day line in mind.

How to Apply, Step by Step

MSVA uses one admission packet for the Collins, Jackson, Kosciusko and Oxford homes and a separate packet for Tradition, and both are linked from MSVA's Veterans Homes page.4

MSVA's packet says you'll be notified of any action on the application and can contact the Veteran Service Officer with questions along the way.4

How MSVA's Waiting List Works

MSVA's admission rules cover the waiting list as well as admission, and the order matters if your parent's name is on it.4

• Transfers come first. When a bed opens at a Mississippi State Veterans Home, first priority goes to current residents of the MSVA home system who want to move to that home, then to veterans on that home's waiting list.
• Peacetime veterans go on a separate list. MSVA lists peacetime veterans on a separate waiting list and does not give them preference over a wartime veteran.
• Turning down a bed costs your place. An applicant who refuses an available bed loses priority on MSVA's list, and one who declines a bed two or more times moves to the inactive list until telling MSVA they are ready to return.

MSVA doesn't publish how long the list runs at any Mississippi home. Because a refusal costs priority, apply to the home your family can actually accept, and call it regularly to ask where your parent stands.4

Learn More

Find personalized help getting a veteran parent into a Mississippi State Veterans Home at brevy.com.

The information on Brevy.com is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional legal, financial, or medical advice. Rules vary by state and program and change frequently. Always verify with the relevant agency or a qualified professional. Brevy is not a law firm, financial advisor, or healthcare provider.