Since 2018, VAC has been streamlining applications for male veterans with erectile dysfunction caused by medications for psychiatric conditions, but there is no equivalent process for female veterans.
In 2018, Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC) changed its processes and streamlined erectile dysfunction claims related to a psychiatric condition. Despite research that shows medication to treat psychiatric conditions can cause sexual dysfunction in both men and women, there is no equivalent process for sexual dysfunction applications for female veterans. This disparity can disadvantage female clients who may need to wait longer for access to treatment or compensation for similar conditions.
The Office of the Ombudsperson (OVO) investigated the adjudication process of sexual dysfunction claims related to a psychiatric condition. The purpose of the investigation was “to determine whether veterans have equitable access to fair and timely decisions for sexual function disability benefits, regardless of their sex.”
The OVO reviewed VAC adjudication instruments and processes, client data, related Veterans Review and Appeal Board cases and academic literature.
The report by the Ombud Nishika Jardine was released in April 2022. It found “systemic unfairness” for female veterans in some decision-making processes. Serious limits in VAC client data were also found, which the report states “made it impossible” to measure the impact of the systemic sex-based biases.
While VAC data is clear about the number of male clients with entitlement for a sexual dysfunction, the number of female clients is “unclear because their claims are combined with all claims by female clients for reproductive or urinary conditions.”
The report notes that “searchable, disaggregated data is necessary to identify trends and inequities among the diverse veteran client population.” This data is needed to conduct Gender Based Analysis Plus (GBA+) and identify improvements to policies and programs and ensure fair access to programs and services.
The report presents five recommendations to address the sex-based biases uncovered in the adjudication process and improve the granularity in data collection to better capture the nature of sexual dysfunction claims in VAC’s diverse client population.
It states, “amending those processes could assist decision-makers to ensure clients with sexual dysfunctions other than erectile dysfunction are not waiting longer or experiencing unfair outcomes.”
The report indicates VAC has begun to address some of the issues raised.
Federal Retirees welcomes this report and its recommendations. As part of our advocacy work on veteran well-being, the Association has been calling on the government to ensure the use of sex- and gender-informed data and research. This information is essential to develop evidence-based policies and practices needed to achieve equitable outcomes for all serving military members and veterans.
Ensuring timely and transparent decisions for veterans waiting to access benefits and programs is also among our priorities, and Federal Retirees will continue to monitor the progress of these recommendations.