NATO Veterans Organization of Canada
Organisation canadienne des vétérans de l’OTAN

Press Release

Updated - September 09 2012

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Advocacy Press Release

Posted November 5, 2011

The NATO Veterans Organization of Canada has two major issues:
• all veterans receive the full benefits of medical care, commencing with Long Term Care.
and
• the responsibility of Veterans Affairs Canada to ensure availability of adequate and appropriate facilities and staff for the provision of that care.

ESTABLISHING ELIGIBILITY
The NATO Veterans Organization of Canada fully recognizes the sacrifices of World War 2 and Korean Veterans and fully supports all the benefits available to that outstanding generation of Canadian Servicemen and women. However, at some point in time the Federal Government deemed it appropriate to place the Post Korea members of the Canadian Forces in an inferior category. The fact of the matter is that the vast majority of the so called “Modern Day Veterans” served this country in uniform much longer and under equally hazardous conditions as our predecessors.

The rigors of military service have very few parallels in occupations in the civilian world, whether that service was in the Air, Sea or Land component. Many years of continuous days and hours in M113 Armoured Personnel Carriers (APC), Tanks, trucks, ships or aircraft, in many environments and countries take its toll on the human body, be it the knees, hips, back, lungs, hearing or the mind. These ailments may not become evident until many years following release from the Canadian Forces but can be, and in many cases are, directly attributed to military service. There is also the long term impact on the families of those service personnel who were obliged to endure lengthy periods of absence of the spouse on foreign duty.

It is our contention that the distinction in eligibility for benefits between “Traditional” and “Modern Day Veterans” must be removed. This will finally give some validity to the Minister’s Statement that “A Veteran is a Veteran”

PROVISION OF CARE
The Armed Forces of Canada are now, and have always been a Federal Government Agency. By logical extension, Veterans of the Armed Forces remain a Federal Government responsibility for the provision of care and administration. The 1963 Glassco Commission notwithstanding, the Federal Government has an inherent responsibility to provide efficient and detailed supervision over the provision of health care to all its Veterans and to ensure a system of detailed accountability. Yet the following quote from your letter seems to absolve VAC from all aspects of the provision of health care.

“As the provision of long term care is a provincial responsibility, the majority of our Veterans are assessed and placed in approved long term care facilities by the relevant provincial agency. Facility licensing and monitoring are also provincial responsibilities and strict rules concerning safety exist and are provincially enforced.”

The fact that “Veterans are assessed and placed in approved long term care facilities by the relevant provincial agency” removes VAC from any direct involvement with the veteran. The fact that we have at least 13 different Health Care systems in Canada, each with a different set of priorities which are largely driven by Provincial finances, does not bode well for a uniform system for treatment of Veterans.

VAC states that “Eligibility for Veterans’ care in contract beds and VAC’s support in community facilities are legislated by the Government of Canada. VAC expects that as War Veterans no longer have a need for long term care contract beds, that they will be transitioned to the provinces. There are no anticipated changes to eligibility to allow CF Veterans access to contract beds. ”

NVOC, in the best interests of all veterans we have come to the conclusion that we must now dedicate our efforts to changing these policies to ensure that Post Korea Veterans, so called Modern Day Veterans, receive the full benefits of medical care, commencing with Long Term Care.

We want to advise VAC that NVOC will be undertaking an information and advocacy campaign to this end. VAC will always be advised and we promise no surprises or “media ambushes” on what we, NVOC, are doing.

NVOC will now, through our headquarters and regional offices, will be contacting our local Senators, MPs /MMPs and the media on the subject of lack of provision of long term care unless a member is under a full disability pension.

Since the responsibly for Long Term Care has, by government mandate, been passed out of hands of Veterans Affairs Canada by the closure of all but one veterans’ hospital, you will notice we are including Senators ,MPS, provincial MPPS in this grass roots approach.

 
Sincerely

Last modified

September 09 2012

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