Thank you for the question.
You are correct. We focused on those veterans who are totally and permanently incapacitated. If they are not entitled to a pension from the Canadian Forces because they served for less than 10 years then they may receive a permanent impairment allowance. Aside from that, at 65 years of age they will receive no income from Veterans Affairs Canada. This is probably due to the fact that in past years, between the end of the Korean War and before the war in Afghanistan, there was a pension system and most members, when they were released for medical reasons, received a pension from the Canadian Forces. Therefore they had a guaranteed income for life.
Now, when there are missions like that in Afghanistan, soldiers often join the Canadian Forces to participate in that mission and then they leave the Canadian Forces. Therefore they are not serving for at least 10 years, which is the minimum number of years required for receiving a pension after you've been released for medical reasons. Given those circumstances, many veterans over the next several years will end up with a very low income, if any income at all, at age 65.
In our report, we identified that 53% of individuals who are totally and permanently incapacitated do not receive impairment allowances. Veterans Affairs Canada has a definition of an individual who is totally and permanently incapacitated. It makes no sense that individuals who are designated as such by the department are not receiving permanent impairment allowances, which would guarantee them an income after age 65.