Good afternoon, Mr. Chair and members of the committee.
Thank you for inviting me to speak to you about the wait times faced by veterans looking to obtain a decision on their disability benefit claim.
Today, I am pleased to be joined by Duane Schippers, deputy veterans ombud. He is no longer acting.
The most important task of any ombudsman is to respond to individual complaints. The primary role of the Office of the Veterans Ombudsman is to receive and attempt to resolve complaints for VAC clients when they are having difficulty with the department.
The number one complaint we receive from veterans is about their frustration with lengthy wait times for disability benefit decisions. In 2016, these represented 16% of all the complaints we received. Today, it is 21%. We are all well aware that this is a difficult situation that needs to be resolved in order for Canada to better meet its commitment to veterans.
You have received many statistics about this issue, and it is easy to get lost in discussing the number of weeks and the number of people who wait longer than others. Today, I want to draw your attention away from the numbers and onto real people—the veterans themselves. I would like to talk about the effects of these wait times.
VAC reports its backlog and wait times as an average of all claims that are being considered. These include first applications, reassessments and expedited claims by “red zone” veterans who are over the age of 80 or who have a life-threatening health concern.
In our view, the situation of veterans who have submitted an initial application should be considered in greater detail.
I would suggest that it is more important to appreciate what this wait time for decisions actually means to veterans.
Some veterans need a positive decision to receive health care benefits for service-related conditions, including prescription drugs, dental care, supports such as home adaptations, and prosthetics.
While some veterans may be eligible to receive treatment under the rehabilitation program while they wait, VAC does not clearly communicate this. Not all veterans will be eligible, because the claimed condition must be causing a barrier to re-establishment, which isn't always the case. Without proactive triage and clearer communications, lengthy wait times can prevent access to necessary treatments for service-related conditions.
VAC is well aware of the wait time impact on veterans who have submitted first applications. We have seen changes that mitigate this impact since we first published our report on this subject in 2018. Now, treatment benefit reimbursement is provided going back to the date of application. This is a positive step, but veterans can still experience financial hardship by having to pay up front for health care treatment and services while awaiting that decision, and then waiting for reimbursement. Worse, they may forgo treatment altogether. If you are one of the thousands still waiting, you may also be waiting for treatment.
The most recent change to the veterans health care regulations will, as of April 1, afford veterans an important bridge for up to two years of VAC-funded mental health treatment while they are waiting for the decision on their mental health disability claims. I would ask the government to go further: Provide the same bridge benefit for all disability claims, and in so doing close this immense gap in veteran health care that is triggered by release from the CAF.
Until then, I will continue to focus on the impact of wait times for decisions on first disability claim applications. The gateway to the disability benefits program is primarily through an approved disability claim.
This is an unquestionably complex issue. My goal today is simply to focus your attention on the veterans hidden behind these statistics.
No veteran should have to wait for these decisions that can have such an important impact on their health and well-being. That women and francophones still wait longer than their anglophone and male counterparts will remain a frustration until all veterans, regardless of gender or language, have equitable access to timely decisions by VAC.
In short, I invite you to look beyond the numbers and instead focus on the impacts these delays are having on our veterans.
I would urge you to ask VAC how many veterans are waiting for a decision on their initial application, now that you know that these are the numbers that have the most impact on our veterans' health and well-being.
Your interest in this issue is very important to me as the veterans ombud and to my office.
Once again, thank you for inviting me to share my perspective.