You served overseas without a uniform. The care you're owed doesn't expire.
If you were hurt working outside the U.S. for a government contractor — security, logistics, construction, translation, anything on a federal contract — the Defense Base Act makes the contractor's insurance carrier responsible for your medical care for as long as the injury requires. That includes care at home. It is one of the benefits contractor families miss most.
Five things worth knowing before your next call with the insurance company.
The law requires treatment "for such period as the nature of the injury requires." When your doctor prescribes nursing or attendant care at home, the carrier is responsible for it. There is no cap and no episode limit.
The Act gives the injured worker free choice of treating physician. If you've been steered into "their" doctor, that was a choice you had all along.
When attendant care is prescribed, a family member can frequently be employed through a licensed agency — trained, nurse-supervised, and on payroll for the work they've been doing free for years.
MMI affects wage benefits. Medical and attendant care that maintain your condition continue. If someone implied your care winds down at MMI, that's not what the law says.
When the injury came from hostile action, federal law stands behind the claim in ways most families miss. If you were hurt by an attack, an IED, or hostile fire, say so — it matters.
If you worked overseas on a U.S. government contract, this is probably you.
Citizenship doesn't matter. Uniform doesn't matter. Even off-duty injuries overseas can be covered.
A quick self-check
- You worked outside the U.S. for a company on a U.S. government contract
- You were injured or became ill because of that work — physical injuries, and conditions like TBI
- Your claim was accepted, and your medical benefits are still open
- You need hands-on help at home — bathing, dressing, mobility, daily care
Check all four and you should be receiving care — likely more of it than you're getting today. Not sure about one of them? That's exactly what a first phone call is for.
Injured working the ports, or at a base exchange or commissary inside the U.S. instead? That is the Longshore Act — the parent law the Defense Base Act extends overseas. Same benefits, same lifetime medical care, same free choice of doctor. The Longshore and base worker guide →
Care in Nevada. Answers everywhere.
In-home care, delivered
Nurse-owned attendant care and skilled support for DBA patients in Las Vegas and Southern Nevada — including hiring and supervising your family member as your paid caregiver. We staff only on written carrier authorization, so your care never becomes a billing fight in your living room.
Lifetime-care cost projections
Before anyone talks numbers about your future, the cost of your future care should be documented properly. We prepare lifetime attendant-care cost projections for families and attorneys anywhere in the country, at no charge.
Benefit guidance
What the Act owes you, what your carrier authorization should say, what documents your doctor needs to write, and what questions to ask — explained by a nurse who works these cases.
A settlement can close your medical benefits. Permanently.
Some DBA settlements trade your lifetime medical care for a one-time payment. That can be the right choice or a devastating one — and it depends entirely on whether your future care has been priced correctly. That decision belongs to you and your attorney. Our part: a free, documented projection of what your care will actually cost over your lifetime, so nobody is guessing with your future. Ask for it before any settlement conversation, not after.
Representing a DBA claimant?
Free lifetime attendant-care cost projections for future-medical valuation, on any case nationwide. Nurse-owned delivery for your Nevada-resident clients — written-authorization discipline, hour-accurate documentation, family caregivers on payroll.
What contractor families ask us
Is this the same as VA benefits?
No. The Defense Base Act is federal workers' compensation for civilians hurt working overseas on government contracts. Many contractors are also veterans — you can have VA benefits and a DBA claim at the same time. They're separate systems, and families often leave one of them on the table.
Can my wife or son really be paid to take care of me?
Often, yes. When your doctor prescribes attendant care, a family member can frequently be hired through a licensed agency — trained, supervised by a nurse, and paid for the care they're already providing. It has to be prescribed and authorized properly, and that paperwork is our part of the work.
The adjuster says my care is winding down. Is that true?
Reaching maximum medical improvement changes wage benefits — it does not end medical or attendant care. Care that maintains your condition continues for as long as the injury requires. If you're being told otherwise, talk to your attorney, and call us.
I already settled my case. Is there anything left for me?
It depends on what was settled. Some settlements close only the wage side and leave medical benefits open. If your medicals were closed, there may still be other paths to care — including VA benefits if you're a veteran. Bring your paperwork to a call and we'll tell you honestly what's there.
Do you work with families outside Nevada?
Hands-on care is delivered in Nevada. Cost projections, benefit guidance, and education are free to families and attorneys anywhere in the country. If your case is large enough, we'll talk about how care could work where you live.
What does any of this cost me?
Guidance and cost projections are free. Care itself is billed to the insurance carrier under written authorization — not to you.
One call. A nurse. Straight answers.
Whether you need care in Nevada, a cost projection anywhere, or just to understand what you're owed — the first conversation is free, and it's with a nurse who works these cases.
Call a nurse — (702) 814-9630Alara Home Care is a Nevada-licensed, nurse-owned home care agency. We are not a law firm and do not provide legal advice; decisions about claims and settlements belong to you and your attorney. Care described on this page is provided when prescribed by a treating physician and authorized in writing by the responsible insurance carrier. Cost projections and benefit education are informational services provided at no charge and are not a guarantee of benefits or authorization.