HALIFAX – Three federal members of the New Democratic Party met with veterans and their families in front of the Camp Hill Veterans Memorial Building today.
They’re calling on the federal government to allow all veterans access to hospitals and long-term care facilities run by Department of Veterans Affairs across Canada.
The official Opposition Critic for Veterans Affairs, Peter Stoffer, says there are eleven empty beds in Camp Hill, but modern day veterans are denied access.
“In 1966 when the Canada Health Care plan came into effect, the government of Canada made a decision then, that the facilities at that time, which were veterans hospitals, were only available for World War I, World War II, or Korean overseas veterans,” said Stoffer.
The policy remains intact, which means veterans like Ernest Campbell and Robinson Blackhurst, who both served after the Korean War, are not eligible for long-term care at Camp Hill.
78-year-old Campbell, who served 20 years in the army, is heartbroken.
“We got no place to live, really, not in comfort like I’ve seen in there (Camp Hill). I’ve been in there,” said Campbell, “and I’ve seen the comfort that they get in there.”
Robinson Blackhurst has been in the Dartmouth General Hospital since suffering a stroke in January. He also suffers from asbestosis, a lung disease caused by direct exposure to asbestos, which is related to his time in the military says his daughter Sandy Blackhurst.
Doctors told him he needs to be in a long-term care facility. “I forget to take my pills. I forget to eat meals,” said the 25-year Navy veteran.
The NDP has continuously asked the federal government to change the old policy and allow veterans who served after 1953 to be admitted to Camp Hill. Right now, the province helps pay for long-term care for vets who can’t get into Camp Hill. Stoffer says in Nova Scotia, it’s 41-million dollars annually.
“We have asked the government to stop this downloading and to ensure our modern day veterans have the same access to care that our World War II, World War I and Korean veterans have received as well,” says Stoffer.
Campbell gets home care, but said at Camp Hill, he would have more in common with other patients. “If a military man was sitting next to me,” said Campbell, “I’d be able to talk to him about what happened during our service and all that kind of stuff – mostly lies, but some good stories.”
Earl Corn, a 37-year veteran who a retired Navy Lieutenant, was in attendance for moral support. “They have this common thread,” said
Corn, “whether you’re a soldier, sailor, airman or air lady, that brings them all together and to me that’s important in a place like this, that’s where they deserve to be.”
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