Question Period Note: DISABILITY PROCESSING TIMES AND ACTION PLAN

• The Government is fully committed to the health and well-being of Veterans and their families.

• In 2020, Veterans Affairs Canada released a strategy to address the long-standing issue of processing times for disability benefits decisions, and hired more than 350 additional temporary employees, dedicated to the disability benefit decision-making process.

• Since that time, we have reduced the backlog by more than 50%. As of September 30, 2022, there were 9,687 applications over the service standard for disability benefit applications.

• The Government recently announced funding of $139.6 million over two years to extend temporary employees to continue to reduce processing times for disability benefits.

• We have made progress and we know there is more to be done – which is why we are working on a number of new initiatives to make more decisions faster and putting Veterans first.

BACKGROUND - DISABILITY PROCESSING TIMES AND ACTION PLAN

Current State (September 30, 2022):
• On September 28, 2020, the Parliamentary Budget Office released a report on Disability Benefits Processing at Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC). The report focused on Public Service Capacity requirements to eliminate the backlog of applications beyond the service standard.
• The average turnaround times using the new calculation for the current fiscal year to date (April 1 to September 30) are 29 weeks for first applications; 10 weeks for reassessments; and 17 weeks for departmental reviews.
• Veterans Affairs Canada has reduced the backlog by more than 50% since the Spring of 2020. As of September 30, 2022, the total number of pending disability benefit applications was 30,725. Of this total, 9,687 are beyond the service standard (i.e., backlog).
• Applications are fast-tracked for those who are medically at risk (e.g., palliative, advanced age, etc.) or who have an immediate, unmet health need related to their claimed condition.

Veterans Affairs Canada Action:
• Reducing processing times for disability benefit applications is our number one priority.
• The Department published a Strategic Direction document, Timely disability benefits decisions: Strategic direction for improving wait times, in June 2020. This document outlined the measures we would take to improve our services to Veterans and their families by changing the way we work to make faster disability benefits decisions. Since the release of the plan, we have made progress on a number of the initiatives. The Strategic Direction document is being updated for release in fall 2022, and will outline progress over the past two years and our priorities for the next two years.
• Over the last four years, to keep pace with the rise in demand, the Government committed to a series of temporary funding measures for resourcing and automation.
• In February 2022, the Government announced funding of $139.6 million over two years to extend the temporary positions as part of action to reduce processing times for disability benefit applications at Veterans Affairs Canada.
• In 2021-2022, the Department’s service standard results for Disability Benefits were twice as high as that from 2019-2020 (46% from 23%). As we work from the oldest, we expect to see even further improvements as we reduce the number of applications over the service standard. In 2022-2023, (year-to-date as of September 30, 2022) 56% of Disability Benefits first applications have been completed within the service standard.

WHEN PRESSED:
Q1 - What is the current number of backlog applications for disability benefits?

Veterans Affairs Canada has reduced the backlog by more than 50% since the Spring of 2020. As of September 30, 2022, there were 9,687 applications over the service standard for disability benefit applications.
Q2 – What is the current backlog in terms of time between when an application for benefits is made and the Veteran finally receives the benefits?
Veterans Affairs Canada’s service standard for disability benefits applications is 16 weeks for first applications and reassessments, and 12 weeks for departmental reviews, 80% of the time. Based on a recommendation from the Office of the Auditor General, as of 1 April 2022, the Department updated how we define processing times for the purpose of our service standard. Therefore, all turnaround times and service standard results for disability benefits reported for the fiscal year 2022-2023 will represent the time between when we receive a complete application and when a payment is made (for favourable decisions). Previously, processing times showed the time between when we received a complete application and when a decision was made (decision date). The average turnaround times, even those prior to 1 April 2022, have been calculated using the new method to allow for accurate comparisons from one fiscal year to another.

Using the new calculation, the average turnaround time for first applications for the 2021-2022 fiscal year, as of March 31, 2022, was 39.7 weeks, compared to 48.8 weeks for fiscal year 2020-2021. For 2022-23 fiscal year to date (as of September 30, 2022), the average turnaround time for first applications is 28.6 weeks.
Between 2015-2016 and 2021-2022, Veterans Affairs Canada experienced a 47% increase in the number of applications received for disability benefits. During this same period, Veterans Affairs Canada made improvements to decision-making processes and hired new staff.
Veterans Affairs Canada has made progress and has a better understanding of the challenges in processing disability benefits, and is continuously looking for ways to accelerate the decision-making process. However, it will take additional time for Veterans Affairs Canada’s efforts to reduce the backlog of disability benefit applications to be fully reflected in its processing times. The Department is currently focused on completing its oldest claims which, unfortunately, already have lengthy processing times.
Q3 - What are the government's precise targets for the amount of the backlog that will be reduced by April 1, 2022, July 1, 2022, October 1, 2022, January 1, 2023?
Pending Backlog
March 31, 2022 30,825 (actual) 11,619 (actual)
June 30, 2022 29,355 (actual) 10,144 (actual)
September 30, 2022 30,725 (actual) 9,687 (actual)
December 31, 2022 25,500 8,600
This is the most recent forecast based on the following assumptions: (1) intake will be 6700/month and (2) production will be 7,200/month until Dec 2022
Veterans Affairs Canada has reduced the backlog by more than 50% since the Spring of 2020. As of September 30, 2022, there were 9,687 applications over the service standard for disability benefit applications.
As a result of the February 2022 announcement, the Department received funding of $139.6 million over two years to extend temporary employees to help reduce processing times for disability benefit applications.
By spring/summer 2023, the Department expects to have cut the number of applications waiting longer than our service standard (i.e., backlog) to about 5,000 provided application intake levels stay consistent. Our goal is to initially achieve our service standard of 80% of applications being processed in 16 weeks in the Spring of 2023 - to be maintained for a full fiscal year before we declare that the service standard is being met.

Veterans Affairs Canada continues to streamline the disability benefits process, simplify the decision-making process for some medical conditions, and work with its partners to speed up access to service health records. Applications are fast tracked for those who are medically at risk or, have an immediate, unmet health need related to their claimed condition.

Q4 – What are the statistics on wait time reduction (comparison from June 2020 to present – processing times and processing times past the 16-week service standard period)?

Based on a recommendation from the Office of the Auditor General, as of 1 April 2022, the Department updated how we define processing times for the purpose of our service standard. Therefore, all turnaround times and service standard results for disability benefits reported for the fiscal year 2022-2023 will represent the time between when we receive a complete application and when a payment is made (for favourable decisions). Previously, processing times showed the time between when we received a complete application and when a decision was made (decision date). The average turnaround times, even those prior to 1 April 2022, have been calculated using the new method to allow for accurate comparisons from one fiscal year to another.

For the current fiscal year to date (April 1 to September 30), the average turnaround time for first applications using the new calculation is 28.6 weeks, down from an average turnaround time of 39.7 weeks in 2021-2022 and 48.8 weeks in 2020-2021. In 2022-23 (year-to-date as of September 30, 2022), 56% of Disability Benefits first applications have been completed within the service standard. This is up from 30% in 2020-2021, and 46% in 2021-2022.
Q5 - What specific steps have been taken to address the backlog, and when was each step implemented?

Reducing the processing times for disability benefits remains VAC’s top priority. Our service standard target for disability benefits is for 80 percent of decisions to be made within: 16 weeks for first applications and reassessments (review as to whether the condition has worsened); and 12 weeks for departmental reviews (review to confirm or change an original decision). For the year 2021-2022, we met the established service standard for first applications 46% of the time. While the Department made progress in improving the service standard results, we realize that there is still more work to do and we are committed to ensuring that Veterans receive their decisions in a timely manner.
The Department published a Strategic Direction document, Timely disability benefits decisions: Strategic direction for improving wait times, in June 2020. This document outlined the measures we would take to improve our services to Veterans and their families by changing the way we work to make faster disability benefits decisions. The Strategic Direction document outlines four lines of effort: public service capacity, integration, process innovation and digital solutions. The Strategic Direction document is being updated for release in fall 2022, and will outline progress over the past two years and our priorities for the next two years.
Public Service Capacity
• In February 2022, $139.6 million in funding was announced to allow the Department to extend its already trained disability decision-making resources until March 2024, allowing the Department to minimize time spent on training and maximize time spent on decision making.
• With the help of both our permanent and temporary employees, from April to August 2022, we completed an average of 4,200 applications per month.

Integration
• The Department implemented the Veteran Benefit Teams structure to allow staff to work more collaboratively to reduce the number of times files change hands.
• A Strategic Initiatives Directorate was put in place in the spring of 2020. This Directorate is dedicated to providing coordination and oversight of initiatives.

Process Innovation
• The Department is updating its Entitlement Eligibility Guidelines (i.e., tools for decision-makers). The improvements to the EEGs will allow adjudicators to make more rapid decisions on the entitlement aspect of a Veteran’s application. New EEGs for certain conditions will streamline decision-making, reducing the number of handoffs.
• In May 2021, a Veteran consultation was launched on the Disability Benefits Application Process. This consultation was designed to help us develop solutions to make applying easier, and to create new tools to help our decision-makers process applications faster. We expect this will lead to immediate and ongoing improvements in the process, fewer incomplete applications, and improved processing times.
• In October 2021, an employee consultation was conducted to obtain feedback on ways to improve the adjudication process. As a result of the feedback, an action plan is being developed to improve adjudication and help reduce processing times.
• In January 2022, VAC developed and implemented a new Sexual Dysfunction EEG to assist in adjudication of this claim type. This new EEG addresses gaps in guidance of gender consideration related to the adjudication of sexual dysfunction benefit applications.
• Veterans Affairs Canada will be modernizing and improving the Table of Disabilities to reflect the most current health evidence and best practices in assessment to support Veterans. The modernization of the Table will include:
• Ensuring it is up to date to reflect health medical evidence and practices;
• Simplifying sections within the Table of Disabilities, making it more user friendly;
• Planning for automation where possible to improve processes; and,
• Applying a Gender Based Analysis Plus (GBA Plus) mindset to provide evidence-based decisions that are reflective of sex, gender, and other underrepresented groups.

Automation and Digital Solutions
• A new Service Health Records search tool for Hearing Loss and Tinnitus (HL&T) was developed which reduces the time taken to search through thousands of pages of material, presenting decision-makers with only the information and evidence pertinent to a specific disability benefit application. While saving on average six minutes per HL&T application, it also lays the foundation for future development for other conditions.
• Several other automation initiatives are in development including:
1) automatic uploading of evidence bundles to Digital Images which reduces the steps required to review supporting documentation;
2) automatic generation and population of decision letters which would draft a decision letter for a decision-make’s review without the need to re-enter any data or information;
3) handwriting recognition embedded within the search tool which will allow for additional results to be returned; and,
4) enhancing access to VAC from health professionals which includes developing a dedicated portal for submission of documents to save weeks in mailing and manual scanning times (prototype expected September 2022 for HL & T).

Incomplete Applications Initiative
• The Department is currently reviewing the application process to better deal with incomplete applications. This initiative focuses on:
o improving processes to both minimize and address incomplete applications;
o defining a go-forward approach on what is a reasonable definition of a complete application;
o outlining an approach to finalize incomplete applications currently in the queue; and,
o improving data for incomplete applications to better identify these and manage this workload in the future.

Q6 – Why is the 16 weeks service standard 80% and not 100%?
Some files are very complex and therefore, take a longer time to process. Complex conditions require the expertise of someone with a medical background, or medical knowledge, to arrive at a decision.
Q7 – With all the improvements, are you confident you can get rid of the backlog?
The Department is working very hard to address this issue. Although the number of applications received in 2020-2021 decreased, perhaps due to the pandemic, intake in 2021-2022 increased and was slightly higher than the number of applications received in 2019-2020. The number of applications beyond the service standard (i.e., backlog) on September 30, 2022, was 9,687. By spring/summer 2023, the Department expects to have cut the number of applications waiting longer than our service standard (i.e., backlog) to about 5,000 provided application intake levels stay consistent. If we can maintain a low number of applications in the backlog for one full fiscal year, we will likely meet our service standard.
Q8 – How many positions and how much money will it take to obtain 80% / 16 weeks?
There are numerous variables that determine this: intake, production, staff compliment, etc. In February 2022, the Government announced funding of $139.6 million over two years to extend the temporary positions as part of action to reduce processing times for disability benefit applications at Veterans Affairs Canada. This trained staff will continue to help Veterans Affairs Canada reduce processing times for Veterans who are applying for disability benefits.
Q9 - Is the number of applications stabilizing?
Intake is not stabilizing. Although the number of applications received in 2020-2021 decreased, perhaps due to the pandemic, intake in 2021-2022 increased (total received was 66,000) and was slightly higher than the number of applications received in 2019-2020 (63,000).
In 2019-2020, intake averaged 5,200 applications per month. This dropped to 3,800 applications per month in 2020-2021, but increased to average intake of 5,500 applications per month for the 2021-2022 fiscal year (as of 31 March 2022). For the first six months of 2022-2023 (April 1 to September 30), average intake has been 5,800 applications per month.
Q10 - If there is an increase in applications and VAC has the same number of employees, how does VAC handle this?
Since the release of our plan to address the processing times for Disability Benefits, we have made progress on a number of initiatives. The Department continues to monitor intake and will make adjustments as needed to manage any increases.
Q11 - VAC seems to be always 6 months delayed. Late with applications, late in asking for increased funds, late in hiring and training, etc., how can VAC do a better job?
Automation and streamlining will help. Eventually, staff will focus less on administrative and repetitive tasks, enabling them to render faster decisions on the more straightforward applications. Please keep in mind that approximately 83% of the 30,725 pending applications, as of 30 September 2022, are from returning applicants for another/new condition.
Q12 – Is there a firm commitment for resources after March 2022? What resources are needed to get rid of backlog fully within two years?
In February 2022, the Government announced funding of $139.6 million over two years to extend the temporary positions as part of action to reduce processing times for disability benefit applications at Veterans Affairs Canada.
By spring/summer 2023, the Department expects to have cut the number of applications waiting longer than our service standard (i.e., backlog) to about 5,000 provided application intake levels stay consistent. If we can maintain a low number of applications in the backlog for one full fiscal year, we will likely meet our service standard.Hiring, automation and streamlining are all contributing to improved processing times. Although the number of applications received in 2020-2021 decreased, perhaps due to the pandemic, intake in 2021-2022 increased (total received was 66,000) and was slightly higher than the number of applications received in 2019-2020 (63,000). Historically, Veterans Affairs Canada’s capacity to address the processing time issue has been a challenge due to the steady increase of applications and lack of stable resource funding.