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VAC's
Real Vocational Training
Dear
VVi Publisher
VAC has been holding on going
meetings with DND and SISIP with the expressed intent of taking over full
control of all aspects of Rehab services for all those medically releasing
members with an injury attributable to service. They are focused on
having the full control in place by 1 April 2008, and then in a few years to
come they wish to take over control of all medically releasing CF members
regardless of attribution of injury. However in the Charter there are
methods to provide less support to those who do not have a “service
attributable” medical issue so the possibility of a two tiered system is
very real once VAC has removed all other participants in the process and has
brought it down to only DND and VAC. In the Charter VAC only has a
mandate to work with the CF members from their date of release and so up
until recently they have not been able to look at replacing or removing
SISIP since SISIP provides the support for up to 6 months pre release
however, VAC just made a submission to Treasury Board to request extra
funding so they can feed the extra money into the Director of Quality of
Life at DND so DND can officially support vocational training before release
and then VAC can take it over at release. The problem with this is DND
has not had a good track record at keeping these types of training things
going, just consider the PEP program, and so the real possibility exists
that once DND is providing the services with backdoor funding from VAC and
this cobbled together system replaces the coverage SISIP provides then it is
very easy for VAC to cut the funding, DND then folds up the pre release
training options, the same as they have done in the past.
In a nut shell, these actions from VAC will result in the serving and future
CF Vets getting less opportunities than presently exist, essentially the NVC
allows VAC to promise more and provide less. The NVC does the
following:
-
It
removes pensions from the member and replaces them with lump sum payments
– the lump sum award works out to be about 8 years of pensions;
-
It
promises a large suite of programs that are based on a wellness model but
access to all of the programs is determined by VAC deciding if a need
exists;
-
Using
the charter VAC is working toward removing the guaranteed minimum 24
months of support every medically releasing member gets now from SISIP
(and if they are Totally Disabled (the same standard used by VAC) then
they can have support up to age 65) and replacing it with what ever
support VAC may determine is needed and that can be as little as 3 months
of job search support or even less.
-
It
has removed the free major medical support provided by SISIP for those
Vets with less than 10 years service and replaced it with access to the
Public Service Health Care plan and the members now have to pay for what
was once free;
-
It
has reduced the financial support for those vets involved in the Job
Search program. Under SISIP they would continue to be topped up to
75% of salary from all sources at release but under the NVC they will get
access to the CFIS (Canadian Forces Income Support) which is 66 2/3 of
gross income from all sources at release and spousal income is also
figured into the formula;
-
It
continues to offset for Pension Act income so in effect VAC offsets for
its own program.; and
-
On
the good side it does now put in place medical support and psychosocial
support for those really sick veterans and it does allow training for
spouses but only if the Vet is so completely and permanently incapacitated
he can never participate in training himself.
As per our conversation following are questions you may want to look at
passing on to your group to consider so the Vets are aware that they are
about to lose a guaranteed minimum of 24 months of support if medically
releasing and if that happens they will be being treated differently from all
other Federal Government employees and provided with less.
Why is it the VAC New Veteran's Charter will base the provision of support
for Rehab and Earning Loss Benefit (75% top up) on a needs basis - with those
needs determined by VAC - while SISIP will provide full access to their
Voc Rehab and Long Term Disability (75% top up) supports for a minimum of 24
months after release based only on the determination the member is medically
released. Furthermore if the Vet is Totally Disabled (TD) then SISIP
can continue to provide vocational and financial support up to age 65 but
with VAC when the Vet is determined to be Totally and Permanently
Incapacitated (same as SISIP definition of TD) the decision is made the Vet
no longer needs Voc Rehab and all focus remains on medical and psychosocial
or in rare cases training may be provided to a spouse.
The 24 month period is not unique to SISIP as all members of the Public
Service have a mandatory Disability Insurance program that gives them a full
24 months of support if injured and more if required so why should VAC be
providing supports that may not meet the minimum time of 24 months that is
offered to all other government departments and why are they working toward
being the only provider of services to the CF members?
Here is some support for the differences in programs and approaches:
Public Service Disability Insurance description - http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/pubs_pol/hrpubs/tb_865/dis1_e.asp
Disability Insurance (DI) Benefits
If you
become totally disabled, benefits will be payable once you have expended all
your sick leave, provided that a minimum waiting period has been met. These
benefits are designed to supplement disability income and other types of
income received from sources such as the Public Service Superannuation Act
and disability income under the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) or the Quebec
Pension Plan (QPP). You will receive 70 per cent of salary in total from all
sources for as long you remain eligible for disability benefits. In the event
of total and permanent disability, benefits may be payable until the age of
65.
Who
is eligible to receive DI benefits?
You
are eligible to receive benefits for up to 24 months if you become totally
disabled (i.e. you are in a continuous state of incapacity due to illness or
injury and are prevented from performing the duties of your regular
occupation). If, at the end of this 24-month period, you are unable to
perform any commensurate occupation for which you are reasonably qualified by
training or experience, your benefits would be continued. For the
purposes of the Plan, 'commensurate occupation' means one for which the rate
of pay is at least 66 2/3 per cent of the current rate
for your regular position. Thus, if your disability prevents you from doing
your job, and later a commensurate one, the benefits continue for as long as
you remain disabled, but not beyond your 65th birthday.
Source Identification Withheld
Article Links:
BillC45.pdf
NVC Regulations Detailed.pdf
Pieces from NVC.pdf
VAC Report on Plans and Priotities.pdf
Chosen
Soldier Program - Helping Our Troops In The Ghan
Now that the February rotation [has taken]
place, I need your help in re-building my list of soldier's names for the
Chosen Soldier project. Would you please spread the word to your
contacts? We have sponsors waiting to be matched with a soldier.
I need the service number (last 3 digits), rank, full name and mailing
address, and e-mail address, if possible. We would be pleased to hear
from families, and friends of soldiers serving in Afghanistan, or from the
soldier's themselves. Please refer interested parties to our website
at: www.trevlac.biz/Chosen_Soldier.htm
Thank-you for your help.
Joan McMurray,
You Can Help!
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Recommended Links
Military Veterans Research-Study
(Medical Pensions)
https://veteranvoice.info/vetsurvey.htm
https://veteranvoice.info/VeteranWatch/index.htm
Reading
Your Med File - https://veteranvoice.info/MyMedFile.htm
Canadian
Army Veteran Motorcycle Units
http://www.thecav.ca
Chosen
Solder Program
www.trevlac.biz/Chosen_Soldier.htm
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