Veterans denied benefits

[steven lloyd]

Disgusting ...

Veterans denied benefits
by The Canadian Press - Story: 65771
Oct 9, 2011 / 10:56 am

Former members of the Canadian military who are struggling with mental health problems say they're being denied benefits from Veterans Affairs to cover travel costs to their psychologists and other medical professionals.

Two veterans said they've received notice from the department that their travel coverage to psychologists and psychiatrists would end last summer, leaving them on the hook for the payments if they wanted to continue seeing them.

Steve Bird said he was told in June that Veterans Affairs would no longer pay costs associated with his regular trips from his home in southeastern Saskatchewan to Saskatoon to see a team of health-care providers.

Instead, he said the department wanted him to find a psychiatrist and psychologist in Regina, which is about two hours closer.
But Bird, who says he was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and was medically released from the Forces in 2008, said he has made progress with his doctors and switching psychiatrists would only set him back.

"I panicked when I heard, to me, it was them destroying the medical team that had gotten me back to being semi-normal," Bird, 47, said from his home near the White Bear Lake Resort.

"It's so hard to get the mental health people on line with a mental health issue if you have to keep starting over and over and over and over.

"It's reliving everything to get them up to speed and it just sets a person back so far."

Bird and his wife Carla Murray say they made the roughly six-hour trip to Saskatoon every month because they found a psychiatrist who helped him deal with his PTSD, rage, agitation and anxiety, and came up with a cocktail of drugs that finally worked.

Murray said they filed receipts with Veterans Affairs to cover the $500 in gas, food and accommodations per trip.
The couple, who are living on Bird's pensions, say they can't afford to cover the costs of regular trips and have appealed the decision with the department.

Murray said a psychiatrist in Regina told him there was a nine-month waiting list and they didn't have the expertise to deal with military-related PTSD.

A spokesman for Veterans Affairs couldn't discuss the specific case, but said the department's travel policy hasn't changed.

The federal department did not provide someone for an interview, but Simon Forsyth said in an emailed statement that it is "generally expected that veterans will access services from their nearest possible health-care provider."

But he said some veterans can be compensated for travel to a health-care provider if it maintains "an established relationship" and if the "veteran is making significant progress with a particular mental health professional."

A spokesperson for Veterans Affairs Minister Steven Blaney issued a subsequent statement on Sunday saying that departmental officials have been ordered to follow up with the veterans to ensure they're getting the benefits and services they need.

Craig Pottie, a veteran in Truro, N.S., said he also received notice in July that the hour-long drive to Halifax to see his psychologist would no longer be covered by Veterans Affairs even though the department had been paying the costs for more than five years.

Pottie, who says he was diagnosed with a panic disorder linked to his service, said he was told last February that the coverage would expire and that he would have to find care in Truro.

As a result, the 45-year-old says he hasn't seen his psychologist since July.

"She was a like a lifeline," he said from his home. "Without her, my marriage fell apart and my anxiety is returning with a vengeance, to the point that I cannot go outside."

The Office of the Veterans Ombudsman has received 129 complaints concerning health-related travel since 2008, said spokeswoman Lisa Monette. They include concerns over turnaround time for payments, denied claims, frustration over the complexity of forms and inconsistencies calculating distances.

Peter Stoffer, the federal NDP veterans affairs critic, said he has contacted the department about the travel coverage but hasn't been able to reverse the decision and feels it is part of a larger government-wide initiative to cut costs.

"These folks are reaching out for help and we should be there to help them and reimbursing their costs for gas ... I don't see where that's going to break the bank."

Bird said he hasn't seen his psychologist since June or his psychiatrist since last March.


http://www.castanet.net/edition/news-st ... .htm#65771

[averagejoe]

Disgusting ...

Veterans denied benefits
by The Canadian Press - Story: 65771
Oct 9, 2011 / 10:56 am

Former members of the Canadian military who are struggling with mental health problems say they're being denied benefits from Veterans Affairs to cover travel costs to their psychologists and other medical professionals.

Two veterans said they've received notice from the department that their travel coverage to psychologists and psychiatrists would end last summer, leaving them on the hook for the payments if they wanted to continue seeing them.

Steve Bird said he was told in June that Veterans Affairs would no longer pay costs associated with his regular trips from his home in southeastern Saskatchewan to Saskatoon to see a team of health-care providers.

Instead, he said the department wanted him to find a psychiatrist and psychologist in Regina, which is about two hours closer.
But Bird, who says he was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and was medically released from the Forces in 2008, said he has made progress with his doctors and switching psychiatrists would only set him back.

"I panicked when I heard, to me, it was them destroying the medical team that had gotten me back to being semi-normal," Bird, 47, said from his home near the White Bear Lake Resort.

"It's so hard to get the mental health people on line with a mental health issue if you have to keep starting over and over and over and over.

"It's reliving everything to get them up to speed and it just sets a person back so far."

Bird and his wife Carla Murray say they made the roughly six-hour trip to Saskatoon every month because they found a psychiatrist who helped him deal with his PTSD, rage, agitation and anxiety, and came up with a cocktail of drugs that finally worked.

Murray said they filed receipts with Veterans Affairs to cover the $500 in gas, food and accommodations per trip.
The couple, who are living on Bird's pensions, say they can't afford to cover the costs of regular trips and have appealed the decision with the department.

Murray said a psychiatrist in Regina told him there was a nine-month waiting list and they didn't have the expertise to deal with military-related PTSD.

A spokesman for Veterans Affairs couldn't discuss the specific case, but said the department's travel policy hasn't changed.

The federal department did not provide someone for an interview, but Simon Forsyth said in an emailed statement that it is "generally expected that veterans will access services from their nearest possible health-care provider."

But he said some veterans can be compensated for travel to a health-care provider if it maintains "an established relationship" and if the "veteran is making significant progress with a particular mental health professional."

A spokesperson for Veterans Affairs Minister Steven Blaney issued a subsequent statement on Sunday saying that departmental officials have been ordered to follow up with the veterans to ensure they're getting the benefits and services they need.

Craig Pottie, a veteran in Truro, N.S., said he also received notice in July that the hour-long drive to Halifax to see his psychologist would no longer be covered by Veterans Affairs even though the department had been paying the costs for more than five years.

Pottie, who says he was diagnosed with a panic disorder linked to his service, said he was told last February that the coverage would expire and that he would have to find care in Truro.

As a result, the 45-year-old says he hasn't seen his psychologist since July.

"She was a like a lifeline," he said from his home. "Without her, my marriage fell apart and my anxiety is returning with a vengeance, to the point that I cannot go outside."

The Office of the Veterans Ombudsman has received 129 complaints concerning health-related travel since 2008, said spokeswoman Lisa Monette. They include concerns over turnaround time for payments, denied claims, frustration over the complexity of forms and inconsistencies calculating distances.

Peter Stoffer, the federal NDP veterans affairs critic, said he has contacted the department about the travel coverage but hasn't been able to reverse the decision and feels it is part of a larger government-wide initiative to cut costs.

"These folks are reaching out for help and we should be there to help them and reimbursing their costs for gas ... I don't see where that's going to break the bank."

Bird said he hasn't seen his psychologist since June or his psychiatrist since last March.


http://www.castanet.net/edition/news-st ... .htm#65771

Totally agree with you Steve! Disgusting!

[toughnut]

iam not going to be too quick to judge here but If I really felt the need to see a shrink and thought it helped me I would not worry about a couple hundred bucks for travel.Those shrinks are super exspensive and the Govt is still paying that bill so really
dont see it as any big hardship.Lot worst things in this country to worry about than a couple of disgruntled EX government employeees

[steven lloyd]

Lot worst things in this country to worry about than a couple of disgruntled EX government employees

Are you for real ??? We send these people across the world and put them “in harms way” to fight, risk life and limb, and possibly even die for our political agendas. Disgruntled ex-government employees ??? Pathetic.

... I would not worry about a couple hundred bucks for travel.

Exactly. Let’s put things in perspective. There are some policies our government implements (some literally wasting billions in tax dollars) that just make a reasonable person shake their head. Others, like this one, are actually shameful.

[Queen K]

Oh geez, there was talk of funding crack pipes for addicts and now veterns are getting denied benefits?

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/201 ... pipes.html

And there was an arts grant publicized in our local Event paper, get this, $198,000 was granted to two people to study and implement Eco-art projects in local parks. Yup, they got the money and hired consultants to study how they were going to go about this.

But Veterans? Forgetaboutit.

Disgusting.

[Bsuds]

I would not worry about a couple hundred bucks for travel.

Try living on a disability pension and then make a statement like that. These people are our veterans and deserve all our support, financial and otherwise.

[toughnut]

Lot worst things in this country to worry about than a couple of disgruntled EX government employees

Are you for real ??? We send these people across the world and put them “in harms way” to fight, risk life and limb, and possibly even die for our political agendas. Disgruntled ex-government employees ??? Pathetic.

... I would not worry about a couple hundred bucks for travel.

Exactly. Let’s put things in perspective. There are some policies our government implements (some literally wasting billions in tax dollars) that just make a reasonable person shake their head. Others, like this one, are actually shameful.

AGreed on the wasting of billions of tax payers dollars(G8 and Afgahnastan) and all that BUT there are many many sick people that are going to die in cabada because funding is denied.These 2 guys aint sick in the fact they will die or even close to that and besides all they were denied was Travel funds.My kid had a bad heart attack etc.We had to drive him to vancouver afterwards for treatment on 3 different occasions.NO ONE paid for that.This guy volunteered for military duty.I did not ask him to go over there and fight a war that is non of his business and will in no way ever be of benifit to any Canadian person EVER

[Trunk-Monkey]

Lot worst things in this country to worry about than a couple of disgruntled EX government employees

Are you for real ??? We send these people across the world and put them “in harms way” to fight, risk life and limb, and possibly even die for our political agendas. Disgruntled ex-government employees ??? Pathetic.

... I would not worry about a couple hundred bucks for travel.

Exactly. Let’s put things in perspective. There are some policies our government implements (some literally wasting billions in tax dollars) that just make a reasonable person shake their head. Others, like this one, are actually shameful.

I could not agree more!
TM

[Smurf]

[steven lloyd]

I did not ask him to go over there and fight a war that is non of his business and will in no way ever be of benifit to any Canadian person EVER

Actually, your country asked them (or more specifically, that same government that is now treating them like waste), and you are a sad little piece of work. Sorry your life sucks so much that you would deny our veterans such a small benefit.

[toughnut]

I did not ask him to go over there and fight a war that is non of his business and will in no way ever be of benifit to any Canadian person EVER

Actually, your country asked them (or more specifically, that same government that is now treating them like waste), *personal attack removed*/ferri. Sorry your life sucks so much that you would deny our veterans such a small benefit.

*edit8/ferri Why would my life suck?actually Iam extremely happy with my life. Iam not the one complaining? I voiced an opinion? have you not ever heard of such a thing? Some people were upset that these two guys lost their Free travel money to see their shrinks and I simply said I disagree.They can pay their own way.Like i said earlier.My son required special reteatment for his Heart attack aftermath and He had to travel to vancouver from vernon.He had to pay his own way and as far as iam concerned so can these two individuals.people try to make it sound like these guys involved in the Afgahn war are somehow helping fellow canadians be safer etc.This could not be any further from the truth.Iam am not in any way thankfull for their unneeded service.If and When our sovernty or boarders are threatened then I will be the first one to the rescue!!hope that clears the air for you

[CorkSoaker]

...people try to make it sound like these guys involved in the Afgahn war are somehow helping fellow canadians be safer etc.This could not be any further from the truth.Iam am not in any way thankfull for their unneeded service.If and When our sovernty or boarders are threatened then I will be the first one to the rescue!!hope that clears the air for you

It may be true that the war in Afghanistan has little to do with directly defending our borders. I'll give you that. The many things that our soldiers were trying to do over there to make the lives of the Afghan people better I think deserves some respect and recognition. Also soldiers don't choose what war to fight in, they just do what is asked of them. Way to take a dump on all the soldiers that have served and died overseas.

[toughnut]

...people try to make it sound like these guys involved in the Afgahn war are somehow helping fellow canadians be safer etc.This could not be any further from the truth.Iam am not in any way thankfull for their unneeded service.If and When our sovernty or boarders are threatened then I will be the first one to the rescue!!hope that clears the air for you

It may be true that the war in Afghanistan has little to do with directly defending our borders. I'll give you that. The many things that our soldiers were trying to do over there to make the lives of the Afghan people better I think deserves some respect and recognition. Also soldiers don't choose what war to fight in, they just do what is asked of them. Way to take a dump on all the soldiers that have served and died overseas.

no ones dumping soldiers that have served and died overseas.They joined the military and ought to have known the risks etc
I have to pay to drive myself for medical attemtion and so should they especially considering they have NO physical impairments.

[CorkSoaker]

no ones dumping soldiers that have served and died overseas.

people try to make it sound like these guys involved in the Afgahn war are somehow helping fellow canadians be safer etc.This could not be any further from the truth.Iam am not in any way thankfull for their unneeded service.

That kind of sounds to me like you are crapping on those who have served and died overseas.

I have to pay to drive myself for medical attemtion and so should they especially considering they have NO physical impairments.

I don't see this thread going any further but I do not agree with this last point. Perhaps it would be best if you did some research on PTSD and anxiety disorders to discover how debilitating these can be.

[steven lloyd]

Poisoned soldier plans hunger strike
by The Canadian Press - Story: 66685
Oct 30, 2011 / 9:15 am

An ex-soldier who says he was poisoned while serving overseas is planning to go on a hunger strike outside the office of Canada's veterans affairs minister until he gets medical treatment. Or until he dies.

Pascal Lacoste, who believes his steady decline in health began after he was exposed to depleted uranium in Bosnia in the 1990s, intends to stop eating on Nov. 5.

The Quebec City resident chose the date because he expects his weakened body to shut down six days later on Remembrance Day.

Lacoste, 38, says Veterans Affairs Minister Steven Blaney and his department have denied his repeated requests for toxicology tests and decontamination treatments, even though his doctor says his body is carrying an unusually high level of uranium.

The government insists, however, it doesn't see depleted uranium as a potential risk for vets because few, if any, Canadian soldiers have ever come into contact with it while in service.

Ottawa also argues that tests performed a decade ago on a limited number of returning troops did not find any toxic levels of depleted uranium.

But Lacoste, who suffers from a degenerative neurological condition, infertility and chronic pain, insists he has all the necessary medical evidence to support his argument.

"If this is what my country expects from me to die instead of being treated then I accept my fate, except that I will do it publicly," said Lacoste, who plans to spend the hunger strike in his white SUV, which will be parked in front of Blaney's office in Levis, Que.

"It's not a good life, it's been 12 years of suffering. Man, I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy."

Depleted uranium, used in some types of ammunition and military armour, is the dense, low-cost leftover once uranium has been processed.

The metal is 40 per cent less radioactive than natural uranium and is not believed to be harmful unless dust from spent munitions or damaged armour is ingested, according to Veterans Affairs Canada.

Military equipment containing the substance was used in the 1990s during conflicts in the Balkans as well as the first Gulf War â€both of which saw Canadian boots on the ground.

Because of this, Lacoste, who served in Bosnia in 1996-'97, maintains he's not alone.

He believes there are other veterans struggling with the health impacts of depleted-uranium contamination, though they may not even know it.

"I'm at peace with the idea of sacrificing myself for my brothers in arms," said Lacoste, who discovered he had an abnormally high level of uranium in his body in 2003, after his doctor tested his hair.

"If Minister Blaney allows me to die in front of his office, it will really shock public opinion."

A high-ranking official from Veterans Affairs says a handful of vets mistakenly believe their bodies have been damaged by depleted uranium.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said to the department's knowledge no Canadian soldiers have ever suffered health problems due to high exposure levels to the substance.

The court ruled the Veterans Affairs Department must compensate retired serviceman Steve Dornan for a cancer his doctors say resulted from exposure to depleted uranium residue.

When asked about this, the official replied that it was people outside the department who linked Dornan's cancer to depleted uranium.

http://www.castanet.net/edition/news-st ... .htm#66685