Veterans Affairs Committee on March 27th, 2012

[Michael Fisher]

Absolutely. Not all the staff at the call centre are mental health professionals. That said, every shift has some mental health professional who is available at the call centre, whether it's a social worker or a licensed professional counsellor, whatever mental health discipline they have their degree in. We also have the warm hand-off capabilities with the VA's national crisis line. So if anyone calls in, in any kind of crisis, we can do a warm transfer and get them to the services they need. We also have warm transfer capabilities with the medical triage line out of Dayton, Ohio. If anyone calls with a medical crisis, we can get them connected to those services. As well, we have the caregivers' hotline. If we have any caregivers who call in and want more information about the benefits available to them, we can do that warm transfer.

[Brian Storseth, Conservative, Westlock—St. Paul, AB]

Excellent. Thank you very much.

[The Chair, Conservative, Greg Kerr]

Thank you, Mr. Storseth.

Now we'll go to Mr. Casey for five minutes.

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I want to come back to a question that was asked by Mr. Stoffer.

Ms. Flohr, you responded. If I heard you correctly, the appeal process takes 600 days?

[Cheryl Flohr]

From the last data I recall, yes, it's in excess of 600 days for appeals resolution.

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

This is a bigger-picture question. I realize that each of you is a specialist and expert in your field, but for us to listen to each of you here, I'm trying to step back a little bit and have a look at the forest, so just bear with me.

Right now, within your department and within your government, is there a focus on rationalizing, enhancing, or maintaining benefits to veterans? What's the current climate in terms of the direction of your department and the benefits to veterans in your country?

[Margarita Cocker]

I think the climate currently is on enhancing benefits and ensuring that service members who are transitioning out are fully aware of their benefits. We're focusing a lot more on outreach and on ensuring that every veteran who is entitled to a benefit has access to that benefit.

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

That leads me to my next question. If the focus and the climate in your country is towards enhancing as opposed to maintaining benefits, what about your budget, the budget within the department? Much has been made in this country that the veterans benefit budget in the United States has been exempt from austerity measures. Is there anything you can share with us with respect to that?

[Margarita Cocker]

I'm not sure I understand the question. Is your question whether our budget is being impacted, or whether our budget can sustain the benefits that we administer?

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

You indicated that the climate is towards enhancing benefits. Does it follow, then, that your budget is increasing, staying the same, or decreasing?

[Cheryl Flohr]

Over the last many years, VA has experienced an increased budget each fiscal year. I don't have budgetary figures in front of me and can't quote percentages, but it has steadily increased over the last several years.

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

Is there any plan that you're aware of to change that trend?

[Margarita Cocker]

I'll address that. We do have different types of budgets. We have discretionary budgets and we have mandatory budgets. The mandatory budget is where the actual benefit payments to veterans are paid out. As far as my knowledge from the big-picture perspective, there is no plan to change the budgetary limitations of the mandatory expenditures, or again the benefit payments to veterans and on veterans' behalf for their services.

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

Can you give me a breakdown, in percentage terms, of how much of the gross budget for the veterans' benefit department is for administration and how much of it is paid directly to veterans?

[Margarita Cocker]

I don't think any of us came prepared with budgetary information. I think we can follow up with some information, if that's of interest to you, but unfortunately I don't know that anybody else came prepared with budgetary information. I apologize.

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

That's okay. Thank you.

What assistance, what level of benefit, is provided to a veteran on his death? What are the funeral and burial benefits available to a veteran, to his family, for his burial?

[Cheryl Flohr]

For a death that is deemed service-related, that is to say due to a service-connected disability, the maximum burial reimbursement allowance payable currently is $2,000.

For a non service-related death, there are certain eligibility criteria that must be met to qualify for a non service-connected burial allowance. There are actually two different allowances with different eligibility criteria. One is currently $700 and the second is $300. There is also reimbursement for expenses related to a burial plot, and that is currently a $700 reimbursement.

[The Chair, Conservative, Greg Kerr]

Thank you very much.

Mr. Harris, for five minutes.

[Dick Harris, Conservative, Cariboo—Prince George, BC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for your presentations.

I have a couple of questions.

Ms. Flohr, it appears to me, or I'm gathering, rightly or wrongly, that your department or your division is the opening door to the rest of the services. If it's not, is there a single-window entry for veterans who are going to require services, so that once they go through that entry, someone will take their hands and lead them to whatever other services they may require?

Where does the hands-on help come from? Does it come through a single entrance? Do they go through that entrance and then they're helped from there on into other departments that provide different services for them?

[Cheryl Flohr]

For the program that I was primarily speaking about, the integrated disability evaluation system, which again is for those who are undergoing a disability separation from the military, there is a one-on-one relationship with a VA employee, a military service coordinator. That person begins the VA benefit application process.

Again, it's a personal one-on-one relationship between that VA employee and the service member and his or her family, where they get an individual briefing on what their VA entitlements are while they're still on active duty, as well as what VA benefits they'll be able to take advantage of as veterans once they're separated.

That relationship, at the discretion of the service member, can continue beyond separation from service. However, what we see in most cases is that the service member will move to another part of the country and establish a VA relationship with local resources, be it through the vocational rehabilitation program within their state or at their local VA health treatment facility.

The point of entry, generally speaking, for this population would be with that military service coordinator while still on active duty who puts them in touch with benefits and services available.

[Dick Harris, Conservative, Cariboo—Prince George, BC]

So if a serviceman comes back from active duty, is separated from active duty as a result of a serious injury of some sort and comes to the Department of Veterans Affairs for assistance, and you have outlined all of the assistance that's available to them, how long can they anticipate receiving assistance from whatever department they're dealing with?

Is there a period of time where they are transferred from hands-on veterans assistance to care providers who may be under contract with the government or the Department of Veterans Affairs? Are they with Veteran Affairs assistance for life or as long as they need assistance? Do they stay under the care of the Veterans Benefits Administration?

[Cheryl Flohr]

I'll defer to the VHA representative here, as far as health care.

Concerning compensation benefits for injuries or diseases sustained, the goal of the IDES program is to award benefits within the first 30 days after release from active duty. Generally speaking, by law, the first day we can award compensation benefits is approximately 30 days after discharge. Program performance currently is 51 days, on average.

[Dick Harris, Conservative, Cariboo—Prince George, BC]

In the little time I have left, I will go to Dr. Scholten. In the area of your work, you're dealing with the most serious types of trauma injuries, from brain injuries to everything that's described in your presentation. It would appear to me that there would be veterans who, because of their types of injuries, require assistance for life. Do they get that? Do they get that through Veterans Affairs, or is there some point where they are transitioned into care facilities outside Veterans Affairs?

[Dr. Joel Scholten]

The individuals you are speaking of are the severely, polytrauma-injured veterans. That care would be highly individualized, and the treatment plan would be based on the veterans' needs. They are certainly eligible for medical care for life within the VA, and most of that care would probably be given within the VA. However, the VA works with individuals based on their location. If appropriate VA services are not available, then we will contract out with a private provider, for therapy or nursing assistance or whatnot, through a fee-basis contract.

The care is individualized to meet the individual's needs.

[The Chair, Conservative, Greg Kerr]

Thank you very much, Mr. Harris.

We're quite a bit over, actually.

Ms. Mathyssen, you have five minutes.