From July 1, the federal government will overhaul the veterans' compensation system, replacing three separate legislative schemes with a single ongoing scheme. The change follows a damning finding by the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide that the complexity of the existing system was contributing to poor mental health outcomes and increasing suicide risk among veterans.
Royal commission identified complexity as a contributor to suicidality
Veterans’ Affairs Minister Matt Keogh told 7NEWS.com.au the reforms stem directly from the royal commission's recommendations. “This is coming out of a recommendation of the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide that identified that the complexity of the current three different schemes was a contributor to suicidality in the veteran community,” he said.
“At the moment, we’ve had three different pieces of legislation covering different types of service over different time periods — it’s been incredibly complex to navigate.” Under the current system, some veterans can be covered by multiple schemes at once, creating confusion over entitlements and lengthy delays in processing claims.
“For some veterans, they can put in a claim to DVA, they can make it under one particular scheme they think they’re covered under and, in the process of going through processing and approving that claim, DVA realises that, say, one of the conditions that veteran has is actually not under that scheme, it’s one of the other schemes,” Keogh said.
Consequences beyond administrative headaches
Keogh said the consequences go far beyond administrative headaches. “If you’re a veteran experiencing great difficulty because of mental illness, for example, or because of a complexity of different conditions you suffer, the last thing you want to deal with is a nightmare of different systems to get support through, because you’re not clear on what you’re actually entitled to.”
The reforms will also establish a dedicated Veteran and Family Wellbeing Agency focused on supporting veterans and their families. Keogh said the goal is simple: make it easier for veterans and families to understand what support is available and help them access it faster.
“It’s easier for veterans and families to know what they’re entitled to, and it’ll be simpler and therefore quicker for the Department of Veterans Affairs to process those claims, so veterans can get access to the healthcare, the rehab, the compensation that they deserve.”
Expanded access for national servicemen
The reforms will also expand access to some benefits that have historically depended on which legislative scheme a veteran fell under. Keogh pointed to national servicemen who were conscripted during the Vietnam War era but did not serve in Vietnam as one example. While they were later granted some entitlements, many were excluded from benefits available to other veterans, including access to the Veteran Gold Card, which provides DVA-funded treatment for all health conditions.
Under the new arrangements, Keogh said national servicemen who meet the impairment threshold through accepted service-related conditions may become eligible for a Gold Card for the first time.
No veteran will go backwards
A key concern among veterans has been whether existing benefits could be lost during the transition. Keogh insists that won’t happen. “Any veteran that’s already receiving benefits through DVA keeps exactly what they’ve already got,” he said. “But no one will go backwards.” Veterans will not need to re-prove existing accepted conditions, while claims already lodged before July 1 will continue to be processed under the current arrangements.
“So one of the critical things about this change is for any veteran who’s getting something, they don’t need to do anything — they just keep getting what they’re already getting.”
Backlog cleared, processing times improving
For veterans who have spent months or even years waiting for answers, one of the biggest promises of the reforms is speed. Keogh said DVA has already cleared a backlog of 42,000 unallocated claims inherited when Labor came to government and believes the move to a single scheme will further reduce delays.
“When we came into government, there was a backlog of some 42,000 claims that DVA had received that had not been looked at by anybody in the department. We’ve now cleared and processed all of those.” Keogh said claims are now being looked at within 14 days and, on average, processed within three to four months, with the new single-scheme model expected to further reduce delays.
Supporting the whole family
Alongside the legislative changes, the government will establish a new Veteran and Family Wellbeing Agency aimed at connecting veterans and their loved ones with services before they reach crisis point. Keogh said families are often the first to recognise when a veteran is struggling.
“Family members are very often the first responder to a veteran that’s in crisis — a veteran that needs help might not be looking for the help, might not know they need the help,” he said. “Family members being able to access these to get support for their veteran, but also support for themselves, is incredibly important.” The agency will help connect veterans and families with support services, education assistance, crisis programs and wellbeing resources that already exist but can be difficult to find.
For Keogh, the reforms are ultimately about removing barriers between veterans and the support they’ve earned through service. “Having one system moving forward means it’s simpler and easier for people to understand what they can get, how to get it, and to have DVA process those claims more efficiently going forward.”
