Will Budget 2017 Help Veterans?

Will Budget 2017 Help Veterans?

Ottawa, ON - February 20, 2017

This text was authored by Guy Parent, Veterans Ombudsman, and originally published in The Hill Times on Monday, February 20, 2017.

A year ago in The Hill Times, I challenged the status quo to “go beyond today’s ideas and shape tomorrow by clearly defining Veterans’ outcomes – the end results that we want to achieve – and figure out the steps needed to attain optimal results for Veterans and their families.”

A year later, with Budget 2017 on the horizon, have we made progress and begun to clearly define the results that we want to achieve for Veterans and their families?

I believe that Budget 2016 improvements are making a positive difference in the lives of Veterans and their families. But, I also believe that there is still much to do.

To add perspective to this viewpoint, I recently conducted a review of the Government’s response to the recommendations made by my Office since its inception.

Out of the 57 recommendations that were developed in collaboration with Veterans’ advocates and organizations, 37 have been fully or partially implemented and 20 are waiting to be addressed. Six of the items in the Minister of Veterans Affairs’ Mandate Letter are based on my recommendations, and three of these were addressed in Budget 2016 – increasing the Earnings Loss Benefit to 90 percent and the Disability Award to $360,000, as well as changes to the Last Post Fund.

There are still outstanding recommendations that would make a significant impact on the lives of Veterans and their families should they be implemented:

• Retroactive reimbursement of treatment benefits for Veterans, covered under the New Veterans Charter, while they are waiting for a decision from Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC);

• Adequate compensation for primary caregivers of seriously disabled Veterans;

• The overlap between SISIP and VAC income support and rehabilitation programs creates unnecessary confusion and needs to be addressed; and

• The implementation of a Veterans ID card. (I hear about this from Veterans at my outreach events and town halls. After five years, VAC is only now exploring options.)

I would also like to see action on:

• Closing the seam for our serving members as they transition from military to civilian life;

• Reducing the complexity of VAC programs and services;

• Improving VAC’s service delivery approach; and

• Increasing the financial well-being of Veterans so that they have enough money to meet their needs if they can’t work because of their service, and if they can work, to adequately compensate for their pain and suffering.

So, when it comes to Budget 2017, I hope it will address several of the outstanding recommendations that came from the collective work effort of the Veterans’ community over the past several years.

My fellow Veterans and I know that there will be many competing priorities for funds in the upcoming Budget. Veterans have earned Canadians’ respect and gratitude for their service – including putting their lives on the line for Canada – and deserve the best care and support that we can give. We will be watching to see if Budget 2017 ensures better results for Veterans and their families.

Guy Parent
Veterans Ombudsman