PACP Committee Report

Supplementary Opinion from the New Democratic Party of Canada

Chapter 3 of the Fall Auditor General Report: Mental Health Services for Veterans

Notwithstanding our support of the report and recommendations of the Office of the Auditor General, the New Democratic Party would like to add the following as a supplementary opinion.

Wait times for veterans

For eligible veterans, the Department of Veterans Affairs pays for various services not covered under provincial health plans, principally through the Disability Benefits Program. The Auditor General’s report found that veterans did receive timely access to the Rehabilitation Program, but that access to the Disability Benefits Program, which provides veterans with long-term mental health care, is slow and cumbersome.

While the report points out the difference in perceived wait times for veterans and those of the department, the New Democratic Party believes it is essential to examine the wait time from the veteran’s perspective.

From the veteran’s perspective, the application for benefits begins when he or she starts the application. As noted in both the AG report and testimony, the application starts with forms that are overly long and complex. Mr. Jerome Berthlette of the Office of the Auditor General noted that “from the veterans' perspective about 20% had to wait more than eight months from the first point of contact for the department to confirm their eligibility to access the specialized mental health services paid for by the department.” We believe that this wait time is unacceptable and is detrimental to the health and recovery of our men and women in service. Furthermore, the Auditor General found that Veterans Affairs Canada has not developed performance measures that adequately focus on mental health. As a result, Veterans Affairs Canada is not able to demonstrate that the services provided meet the mental health needs of veterans and are effective.

Making care as accessible as possible

The mental health issues facing Canadian Armed Forces members and veterans are serious. A number of veterans have tragically lost their life to suicide. The government must do everything in its power to ensure that veterans are not waiting for critical mental health care support, and that the support they do receive is adequately helping them overcome or cope with their mental illness.

The NDP believes that access to the Disability Benefits Program is not timely and the application process is unnecessarily complex. Veterans Affairs Canada does not meet its published standard of making 80 percent of eligibility decisions within 16 weeks, and it does not analyze the time that lapses between a veteran’s contacting the Department and the Department’s deciding on the veteran’s eligibility.

While we appreciate that, as pointed out by Mr. Michel Doiron, the Department has worked to simplify application forms, more work can be done to ensure the process is as simple and timely as possible for veterans. We believe that greater collaboration between Veterans Affairs Canada and the Canadian Armed Forces would help reduce the time for veterans to complete applications, receive eligibility decisions and access mental health support. 

Updating data to ensure Department resources meet needs

The New Democratic Party is also concerned that Veterans Affairs Canada is not using sufficient data in analyzing the resources needed to facilitate its mental health programs. As Mr. Berthlette stated in his opening remarks, the department saw an increase in the number of its clients suffering from mental health conditions – from less than 2% in 2002 to almost 12% in 2014.

BGen Jean-Robert Bernier, however, stated that the number of mental health positions filled is based on 2002 data, and that as many as 50 sub analyses are currently underway to determine the current need of positions. We are concerned that this out-of-date data does not reflect the current need, or fluctuating nature of the mental health needs of our veterans. We are also concerned that the number of analyses is burdening the process of identifying demand and resources, and the Department should look at streamlining such studies.  

Outreach to veterans and their families

When it comes to educating family members on veteran mental health, the report states that, “Veterans Affairs Canada does not educate family members on possible signs of mental illness. Both families and family doctors have the potential to encourage veterans with mental health conditions to seek help. This is important because veterans may be reluctant to seek help or may not realize they are having difficulties. We found that the Department needs to do more, such as increase consultations with families and family doctors to support their encouragement of these veterans to seek help.” (Section 3.54)

Mr. Doiron informed the committee that a pilot four-year outreach program was underway at seven military resource centre sites across Canada. The NDP believes it is critical that the Department take on outreach initiatives, particularly targeting families of veterans as well as they’re family physicians. Creating more awareness and minimizing stigma will greatly increase the chances of someone suffering from mental illness of getting help.

In conclusion, the New Democratic Party agrees with the Auditor General’s recommendations laid out in Chapter 3 of the Fall 2014 report. However, we are concerned that the long delays and complicated application process are gravely endangering our men and women in service. The Department of Veterans Affairs, along with the Canadian Armed Forces, must heed the Auditor General’s recommendations immediately, to ensure that our veterans receive the absolute best care possible.