Right now I currently live with him, he views me as family. I have been taking care of him for 4 and a half years now. I'm recently unemployed. We are wondering if there are any ways to get me paid for helping him. He is a veteran, and they say not if he doesn't have Medicaid.
If he can afford to pay you to be a paid live-in care attendant, then you can be paid.
He can ask the VA if there are any services he is eligible for, which would include paying for an in-home aide. You say he already gets medication and medical help. What kind of medical help?
I don't have knowledge of what the VA provides.
You shouldn't have any expectation that you can start getting paid for helping out your friend just because you lost your job and need a new source of income. It's not as easy as that. If there is a program through the VA which will pay you, you might be paid a few hours a week for making dinner and doing small tasks for him - it's not a full time job with full time pay.
The stories you hear of people getting paid to take care of a family member or friend, as I am, are taking care of someone who would otherwise need to be in a skilled nursing facility because they can not live on their own and take care of their own basic needs, like toileting and feeding and mobility, and may even require special medical equipment. It's low pay for hard work. For those who qualify for Medicaid, it is more cost effective (for Medicaid) to pay a family member to care for them in their home than to pay for a long term stay in a skilled nursing facility.
What are his health or cognitive issues?
Why can’t he pay you?