Veterans Affairs committee  We have an initiative under way now where we are reviewing all of the communication, all of the letters, all of the decision documents and so on, that we use to communicate with veterans so that they are clear, concise, easily readable, and easily understood. That way we're not s

Veterans Affairs committee  Then they can come back to the department as needed. It's an initiative that's ongoing. We're reviewing all of our letters and all of our communications on a constant basis so that it is plain and clear.

Veterans Affairs committee  We are not asking individuals to provide receipts with their health-related travel claims. However, the program allows for the department to request, on a verification basis, that we receive the receipts in order to verify them. We would do that on an irregular basis, if receipts

Veterans Affairs committee  Right now it takes approximately three to five days for an individual to have a health-related travel claim processed. If the individual is on direct deposit, which was an early initiative, then the cheque is not sent to him in the mail. The cheque is deposited in the bank accoun

Veterans Affairs committee  A year or two ago, it could have been two weeks to 30 days.

Veterans Affairs committee  I would say so, yes. One can always look for improvement. If you could submit online and get your direct deposit the next day, that would be even better, but we're not there yet.

Veterans Affairs committee  I can add a small piece of information. For the My VAC Account clients who have signed up for a My VAC Account and have given us a valid e-mail address and expressed a preference for being communicated with electronically and online, we would be sending messages saying “Please c

Veterans Affairs committee  As of last week, we had 2,700 individuals who communicate with us online through the My VAC Account, and we receive around 300 questions or e-mails through the secure messaging.... E-mail is the wrong terminology, and I'm not a technical expert, but we receive somewhere around 30

Veterans Affairs committee  As I understood that, you said that you've moved three to five kilometres away; are you saying it's 300 to 500 kilometres away, and asking whether you can claim a plane ticket?

Veterans Affairs committee  We would likely suggest to you, as to any other member of the general public, that it would be more useful for you to obtain the services of a physician in your local community rather than purchase a plane ticket whenever you need to see a physician.

Veterans Affairs committee  We have paid to send people to specialists on a referral basis. We have paid for and reimbursed folks for plane tickets, hotel rooms, and an individual to travel with them, if they are unable to travel by themselves and so on.

Veterans Affairs committee  I'm not able to comment on any cuts or....

Veterans Affairs committee  No, I think that would pretty much state it very succinctly, David. It's not personalized to you as an individual, but it's customized to what you've asked for, with respect to your answers to the questions that are on there. If you're RCMP, or if you're Canadian Forces, and if

Veterans Affairs committee  There are a large number of benefits for veterans. Veterans are able to access treatment benefits, veterans independence programs, health-related travel, and long-term care across the country. In terms of the treatment benefits programs—and I may miss some of the programs as I'

Veterans Affairs committee  To a certain extent, the housekeeping/grounds maintenance program is available to spouses when a veteran is deceased. But the health care and treatment benefits programs are programs they would access through their provincial health care, as they would have done when the veteran