Retirement Income Security Benefit (RISB)

I wholeheartedly agree with you Rex but this new approach of making an announcement then having a debrief is actually smart.

Who would know the "wrongs" better then a bureaucrat? A veteran that who!

Within an hour of debriefing the VAC ADM's walked away with over half of the questions that have been brought up here. One thing either they are Academy Award worthy actors in feigning surprise or the situations/questions brought up really did surprise them.

If they keep on this track of announcing, getting info from vets then putting into motion of correcting the NVC then they are finally living up to treating the NVC as a living charter and fixing the flaws with veterans input. Not bureaucratic input that can land them a bonus at the end of the year.

I still did not understand how a veteran with similar ailments have so much of a difference in monetary gains. I am baffled by this! I served with two guys that were in the same trade as me, same rank, and medically released for psychological injuries with no physical injuries. Psychologically, I have been diagnosed with major depression, generalized anxiety disorder, and a chronic pain disorder. Physically, I am diagnosed with chronic mechanical low back pain (I started thinking it was all in my head until a cat scan showed that I have spinal abnormalities) all of these are pensioned conditions; and yes! you all guessed it! I am receiving way less.
Imagine! this happened when I was twenty-five, now I will be thirty-eight and I am still left with financial uncertainties.
My only hope is to finish college and find a career that will be gainful employment. The ELB is a transitioning benefit! Try transitioning when your head is always somewhere else.


I should never ask a question about VAC, it only leads to more confusion.

Right on teen sounds promising, Thanks.

I just wish that they were clearer with the words that they use while talking to the media and to the public. I wish they had merely stated that all Veterans deemed severely disabled, and already approved for financial benefits until the age 65, will qualify for this new benefit at 65, and that it will equal 70% of the income replacement benefit the person had been receiving prior to 65. It would have reduced, if not completely eliminated all the stress Veterans have had over this.

Well trooper I've been listening to the bullshyte from Ministers for 15 years and it looks like we have a good one that is working real hard to change the mindset of VAC from advisarial bureuacrats to veteran-centric.

I am being told that the changes coming are going to make a vets life a hell of a lot easier and less stressful. This is from dealing with paperwork to lingo to making it easier for us to get daily living aids.

If the chatter starts to become reality, and we are talking by the end of August at the latest, it is going to be a hell of a lot easier to be a Canadian Veteran.

So yeah Trooper I'm very optimistic.

Teen,

It sounds like you are optimistic about how things are unfolding here, that has to be a good thing.

If this is a sign of things to come for a better life for Veterans, that is a long time coming.

So far to me at least, the MVA seams to be standing by his own words of his centric approach, allowing Veterans to have contact with him in giving their concerns, is by far the best thing that we can ask for with respect to letting him know where we stand with our needs.

Good stuff, I say !

Well trooper the "case by case" statement he made probably originated from the actual press conference. A Sun reporter asked how much this new benefit was going to cost and he said it is hard to give a dollar amount as this benefit is on a case by case assessment.

I have had a hard time accepting the facts on this as well. Let's all be honest every time they give us something we always get our pockets picked too. So they are actually doing what the Ombudsman said needs to be done...

Either fix the post 65 benefit or you are going to have a lot of homeless veterans or veterans living below the poverty line.

Well VAC has fixed it and it is real good.

thanks a lot teen glad to here that .

propat

Thanks for the clarification teen, I have a hard time trying to except that we took this out of context.

When he gives his interview on the RISB with macleans magazine the heading states that it is for those who do not receive a military pension.

In the video he is asked about examining things on a case by case basis and the question is - how do you make a determination as to how this will unfold ?

He answers by saying it is dependent on the Veteran themselves - Veterans in their 30's or 40's may be receiving a CF pension - this is about providing security for folks that don't have these other sources of income post 65.
Then he goes on to say that - so if somebody has a CF pension that help's make them whole when the ELB drops off, they won't be caught by this.

Then he is asked - They won't need as much ?

He answers - No.

He finishes by saying you have people who served in the afgan war that may not have pensionable time, this will take care of them.

Just having a hard time rapping my head around this one, then again I probably did indeed take his comments out of context.

Nevertheless, it's good news all around !

THANK YOU TEENTITAN....HAPPY DANCE TIME WHERE'S NAV!

OK I'm not ignoring you guys just got a lot on my plate

You are taking O'Toole's comments on the interview out of context. What he was trying to say is people with a CF pension, though still affected by post 65 are not as bad off as a vet without a CF pension. That is why the new benefit RISB is brought in to financially help those without a CF pension.

Again in the debrief on the 9th and today on a teleconference call with both O'Toole, Natnyzk and the OVO the RISB will go to everyone who is in receipt of a VAC payment, LTD payment.

There is no...repeat...no deduction of your CF pension from your RISB.

I know it's hard to accept what I am telling you but what I am understanding and hearing is the only thing you lose post 65 is 30% of your ELB, EELB, LTD.

And yes so far it looks like it is going to be an automatic transfer from LTD to RISB without paperwork. If I hear anything else I will pass it on.

The bill hopefully is written up soon and tabled. Tomorrow there is another announcement on Reservists at HMCS SCOTIAN in Halifax, at 0830 So if someone in the area is there please attend and go to the debrief afterwards. There is another teleconference debrief that I will hopefully call into but if there is someone there it would be good for you to go and see, hear and discuss.

Medically released in 2003, 0 pensions. Sisip was cut off after two years while transitioning (that was a mess) currently living on ELB while attending school. Always worried about my financial situation. Now I am made to worry about when I am 65 if I qualify for a benefit. Glad they are thinking about my future, what about right now?  I hope this centric approach to veterans is really going to be focused on the veteran and on his or her on-going needs.  Clear written or oral instructions of what they will do based on a case to case basis and with clear and concise answers would be beneficial.

For instance, what I get at just under 18 years for a CF pension is well below minimum wage. Won't go far on that. Of course, am entitled to OAS but according to CPP, my CPPD will convert to CPP at 65 and I will lost over half of funds from that source. CF pension is already clawed back but for those who are not in receipt of CPPD, their CF pension will be reduced at 65 so that their income will decline due to clawback. If you are receiving CPP disability benefits when you turn 65, your disability benefit will automatically be converted to a retirement pension. You will not need to apply. "Your CPP retirement pension will be less than your disability benefit." And that is right of Canada Pension Plan website.

Well, we all know CF pension is defined by numbers of years service. So even tho one may be in receipt of a CF pension, it does not mean that they are making much. But we will see how this all plays out before I turn 65. About 8 years left for me to find out. And so much can change in 8 years.

trooper, I am thinking that original number of 406 Veterans referred to  in the interview where based on ELB clients but since the CBC interview and emails sent to the MVA, he is now aware of LTD clients. How many LTD clients are without a DND pension is a good question?