DVA are delighted to write to you today to advise that we have today opened applications for veterans and families to volunteer with the department in the delivery of Anzac Day services in France and Türkiye in 2025.In 2025, we will commemorate a major milestone, the 110th anniversary of Anzac Day – and coinciding with this, is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.Places are naturally limited; 6 veterans and 2 veteran family members will be selected to travel with our commemorative delivery team in the weeks before Anzac Day – and will be given specific roles to support the delivery of the services.

Defence Family Advocate role is to be full-time, with the appointment of Ms Charlotte Webb as the new head of Defence Families of Australia. 

The Defence Family Advocate provides advice to Government and Defence on families’ concerns, provides a forum for families to raise matters and assists families in accessing the Defence information they need.

A letter signed by all DFA Delegates addressed to state premiers and territory chief ministers. The letter urges State and Territory governments to consider the unique needs of the families of serving members in their public sector employment programs.

Vietnam Commemorative Medallion (medallion) and Certificate of Recognition (certificate) to mark the 50th anniversary of the end of Australia’s involvement in the Vietnam War.

Applications close 26 Jul 2024

Veterans’ Health Week (VHW) is being held from 13 to 20 October 2024 with the theme Keep Connected.

Ex-service and community organisations with established links to the veteran community are eligible to apply for VHW funding or to register an event on the VHW website – including unfunded events.

DVA Veteran Card holders with a smart phone or other smart device now have the option to securely store and access their Veteran Gold and White Cards in the myGov app.

On 20 June 2024, Royal Commissioners, Nick Kaldas APM (Chair), The Hon James Douglas KC and Dr Peggy Brown AO presented the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide’s lived experience book to the Governor-General, His Excellency, General the Honourable David Hurley AC DSC (Retd). The book, Shining a Light: Stories of Trauma and Tragedy, Hope and Healing, was then tabled in Parliament on the same day.

This Program is funded by the Housing Australia Future Fund, the single biggest investment in social and affordable housing in more than a decade, and forms part of the Government’s $32 billion Homes for Australia plan.

This new $30 million Program is intended to support veterans and their families experiencing, or at risk of, homelessness.

Every year, about 6,000 veterans are at risk of homelessness.

On census night in 2021, there were about 1,500 Australian veterans who were homeless.

Support CQU in a study into what veterans eat by completing a short survey.

Minister Media Release regarding effect of the Budget on the Veteran Community

From Thursday 18 April until Thursday 16 May 2024 we will be running a survey to learn more about what the veteran community thinks we could do to make MyService better. Even if they don’t use MyService, we would like to understand why.

The survey is:

• completely voluntary

• and will only take 10 mins to complete

DVA has booked a hut at The Oasis for a workshop on 30 April 2024 and are looking for approximately 20 veterans to attend. The workshop is a ‘focus group’ style engagement with the veterans who attend sharing their experience of service, transition, access to services and support.  DVA staff will also be in attendance and the engagement is an opportunity for them to hear the veterans experience first-hand.  The workshop is part of series of engagements conducted by DVA at various locations around Australia.  For the Oasis event, the target cohort is veterans who have transition in the last five years.

New research conducted for the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide estimates that one serving or ex-serving Australian Defence Force member has suicide-related contact with emergency services every four hours across Australia.

Highlighted by the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide in its Interim Report, and fully supported by the Government , we are simplifying and harmonising veterans’ legislation that governs compensation and rehabilitation, so veterans and their families can more easily get the support they are entitled to.

We want your feedback on the draft Veterans’ Entitlements, Treatment and Support (Simplification and Harmonisation) Bill 2024. Here you can review the proposed changes, understand what’s different and why, learn how changes may impact you, and of course, get involved and provide feedback. An information booklet is also available.

Transition Seminars provide information to assist Australian Defence Force (ADF) members and families to prepare for transition to civilian life.

Townsville will have two this year. The first one is on Tuesday 19 March 2024 and the second will be on 13 Movember 2024.

Link to the Transition Seminars Website at Defence.

In the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide’s Interim Report, serious concerns were raised about how the claims backlog - which was at 42,000 in mid-May 2022 – was detrimental to the mental health of veterans.

As at 31 January 2024, the total number of claims yet to be allocated to a delegate has fallen to 3,697.

DVA is also on track to clear the remaining backlog of Permanent Impairment claims before the end of February so they too reach a business as usual rate of allocation.

DVA will continue to provide support to veterans and families during the holiday season. However, please be aware that some services will be impacted.

As the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide moves into its final stages, we are also considering what the future might look like.

A consultation process is now open to inform a proposed new entity to follow the Royal Commission which would monitor the implementation of our final recommendations for meaningful and long-lasting cultural and systemic change whilst contributing to policies and programs that support defence and veteran wellbeing.

We have released a consultation paper outlining the Royal Commission’s preliminary ideas on this new entity, based on what we have heard from serving and ex-serving Australian Defence Force members, their family and friends, as well as other interested individuals and organisations; however, the Royal Commission’s views are not fixed.

As more veterans access our services, we have seen a big increase in compensation claims. We are working on reducing wait times. Find out what to expect.

MyMedicare is a new voluntary patient registration model for all Australians, including Veteran Card holders. It aims to formalise the relationship between patients, their general practice, general practitioner (GP) and primary care teams.

Registration with MyMedicare is voluntary and electing not to register will not prevent you from accessing services you already receive from DVA.

With increasing costs of living and rising costs for business, the veteran community has told us they are finding it harder to find GPs who will treat them without out of pocket costs.

That changes today.

From today it will be easier to access a GP for more than 276,000 Australian veterans.

MyService Claims Enhancements project, being delivered under the Modernisation Program, will deliver new capabilities for Initial Liability (IL) claims on 15 October 2023. The new capabilities in MyService will deliver improvements to the claiming experience for veterans and their families and include:

• tailored messaging on the required supporting documentation needed for a complete claim to be submitted in MyService

• display of key information about all IL claims , irrespective of which channel was used for claim submission

• the display of  a new status ‘awaiting your information’  to provide visibility to the veteran and their families when the department is waiting on information to progress the claim

• notification through myGov to remind claimants that there is outstanding information required to progress the claim and of tasks in MyService to request documentation

• improved document upload capability for all claims including those not lodged through MyService. This will enable veterans and their families to provide the information using MyService rather than surface mail. This capability provides clients with a more intuitive document upload experience, including the ability to add any 'Other' documents they like to their claim up until determination, and view all the documents uploaded in MyService against their claim at any time.

Today marks the beginning of Veterans’ Health Week 2023, an opportunity for the veteran community to renew their focus on improving, and maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

The Albanese Government is improving incentives to get more Australians into work. 

As part of the release of the Employment White Paper, the Government will make two key changes for pension and income support recipients. These include:

• permanently enhancing the Work Bonus for pensioners over the Age Pension age and eligible veterans by providing new entrants with a starting income bank balance and retaining the higher Work Bonus maximum cap to provide more choice and flexibility to participate in the workforce.

• doubling the employment income nil rate period to close to six months (12 fortnights) to reduce barriers for income support recipients to take up work by allowing them to retain concession cards and other supplementary benefits for a longer period when they first get back into employment.

Starting on 1 January 2024 – pending the passage of legislation – all new pension entrants over Age Pension age and eligible Veterans will have a starting Work Bonus income bank balance of $4000 rather than $0, and existing and new recipients will retain the current elevated maximum Work Bonus balance limit of $11,800 rather than $7800.

The Parliament has today passed new laws that will support the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide to complete its important work ahead of its reporting date of 17 June 2024.

The total backlog of veterans’ compensation claims is at risk of not being cleared by the deadline set down by a royal commission.

The Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide handed down an interim report last year that made 13 urgent recommendations, including eliminating the massive backlog of compensation claims by March 2024.

Defence is committed to building a collaborative and connected transition ecosystem that supports the individual needs of Australian Defence Force (ADF) members and their families.

The Veteran Transition Strategy is a joint initiative between Defence, Department of Veterans’ Affairs, and Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation. It was developed through extensive consultation and engagement, including with current and former serving ADF members and their families.

The strategy identifies 6 priority areas that support positive transition outcomes for members and their families. These focus on empowering veterans and their families to:

• plan and prepare for transition early

• access a range of needs based support programs across the ecosystem

• engage family and other significant support people in the transition process

• access employment and skill based training aligned with their professional development goals

• achieve a sense of financial wellbeing

• feel that their service is formally recognised and valued.

Applications for scholarships open each year on 18 August and close on 31 October. Read more about preparing your application in our Application Guide.

AVCAT scholarships include Long Tan Bursaries and sponsored scholarships. Sponsored scholarships are for the children and grandchildren of ex-serving veterans. Long Tan Bursaries are for the children and grandchildren of Vietnam Veterans and are available in each state and territory. The Long Tan Bursary is funded by the Australian Government Department of Veterans’ Affairs.

AVCAT sponsored scholarships are funded by ex-service organisations and private donors.
These scholarships are for children and grandchildren of ex-serving veterans.

All bursaries and sponsored scholarships are for tertiary education and are $4000-$6000 per year, for up to three years.

Australian Defence Force members who served during the Vietnam War have been recognised with the Republic of Vietnam Cross of Gallantry with Palm Unit Citation (the Citation).

The Citation was awarded by the former Government of the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam) to military units that distinguished themselves in battle. The Governor-General has formally approved awarding the Citation to Australian military units in recognition of their service during the Vietnam War.

The new Veteran Employment Program (VEP) was launched last Friday by the Hon Matt Keogh MP, Minister for Veterans’ Affairs.

Designed to complement existing services, the Program is focused on raising awareness of the positive attributes veterans contribute as civilians, assisting employers in providing workplaces where veterans can thrive and opening pathways to new careers and further education through expanded recognition of prior learning.

New initiatives include two new grant programs to support veterans transitioning into employment and tertiary education opportunities.

50 years on from the end of Australia’s involvement in the Vietnam War, the advocacy of Vietnam veterans lives on.

In recognition of the sacrifices made by Vietnam veteran families, the Long Tan Bursary was established to provide the descendants of Vietnam veterans with support for the cost of tertiary education, ensuring they gain the skills and qualifications needed to pursue their chosen career.

In 2023, thirty-seven children and grandchildren of Vietnam veterans have been awarded $12,000 bursaries to continue their education post-secondary school.

The public consultation on a pathway to simplify veteran compensation and rehabilitation legislation is going digital, with community members now invited to participate in webinar sessions.

These webinars will provide a wider opportunity to learn more about the proposed future model for veteran legislation from experts in the Department, ask questions and provide feedback.

We have a number of webinars, tailored to specific veteran interest groups.

• General veteran community webinar, 6:30 – 7:30pm AEST Wednesday 26 April 2023

• Current serving member webinar, 6:30 – 7:30pm AEST Thursday 27 April 2023

• Advocate webinar, 6:30 – 7:30pm AEST Tuesday 2 May 2023

• General veteran community webinar, 6:30 – 7:30pm AEST Thursday 4 May 2023.

Register online to attend a webinar through the DVA website. We encourage you to share these webinar dates with your networks.

The Royal Commissions Amendment (Enhancing Engagement) Bill 2023, which passed Federal Parliament late last month and was enacted today, further strengthens protections for serving and ex-serving ADF members who wish to safely share their stories with the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide. The legislative changes were made in response to a key recommendation of the Royal Commission’s Interim Report released last August.

The new confidentiality protections ensure sensitive information provided to the Royal Commission – such as confidential written statements, verbal accounts or information shared with a Royal Commission staff member – is treated in the same way as information disclosed during private sessions. For example, information covered by these protections: won’t be admissible in civil or criminal proceedings against a person; the unauthorised disclosure of sensitive information will be a criminal offence; and all information will be kept confidential for 99 years after it is provided; and prohibitions extend to Freedom of Information requests and subpoenas for information.

The improved protections will also apply to information already shared with the Royal Commission.

Changes have been made to improve information access from the Department of Defence and Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) for members of the Australian Defence Force (ADF), veterans and their families.

This includes the establishment of Information Access Units within the Department of Defence and DVA, additional education material on the information access process, how and why redactions occur, and updates to both Departments’ websites.

The Pilot Program will continue until 30 June 2024 with evaluation and consideration regarding next steps as part of the Pilot.

The program aims to deliver on the following objectives:

• Facilitate access to spiritual health support and other DVA support programs.

• Provide pastoral care, mentoring and education through transition and into civilian life.

• Provide pastoral care and spiritual health support during crisis, high intensity or acute events, in particular supporting adjustment, grief, and recovery.

More than 160 legal assistance services have been provided to these clients, including 62 legal advices, 19 legal tasks and six Court/Tribunal representation services.

The program is accessible through The Oasis Townsville, a community hub providing a safe space for people with shared experiences to connect with each other and the wider community. Outreach services are also available to Cairns and Mackay.

THE HON MATT KEOGH MP

MINISTER FOR VETERANS’ AFFAIRS

MINISTER FOR DEFENCE PERSONNEL

16 February 2023

VETERANS’ LEGISLATION REFORM CONSULTATION PATHWAY TAKES SHAPE

Today the Albanese Government has taken the next step in responding to the recommendations of the Interim Report by the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide by commencing public consultation on a Pathway to simplify veteran compensation and rehabilitation legislation.

In September 2022 the Albanese Government accepted Recommendation 1 of the Interim Report, agreeing there was an urgent need to simplify the existing legislation.

The proposed pathway to simplify the Veterans’ legislation will be available from today for public consultation.

The proposed pathway seeks to reform more than a century of veterans’ entitlement legislation, providing veterans the support they not only need, but deserve.

The Pathway for consultation anticipates:

• New claims under existing schemes will cease after a transition period, from which point all new veteran claims will be dealt with under an improved Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act (MRCA) as the sole ongoing Act. The MRCA currently services the majority of claims.

• All benefits under existing schemes will continue unaffected, with only new claims or claims relating to deteriorated conditions to instead be covered by the single ongoing Act.

The consultation process will inform the way forward for government to simplify veterans’ legislation.

The Albanese Government is committed to a thorough and considered process which will deliver a better future for veterans and their families.

DVA will continue to provide support to veterans and their families during the holiday season. However, please be aware that some services will be impacted.

Check the link for details.

From today, pensioners over Age Pension age and eligible Veterans will be able to earn more income from working without reducing their pension, just in time to take advantage of seasonal jobs.

Eligible Australians would have the opportunity to engage in the workforce if they chose to do so at a time of workforce shortages without losing any of their income support payments.

As part of the Federal Budget, the Australian Government is investing $46.7 million in eight new Veterans’ and Families’ Hubs across the country to provide essential services to veterans and families in areas with significant Defence and veteran communities. 

This is in addition to the six hubs funded by the Federal Government, including investment in The Oasis Townsville. And the commitment to two further investments in Southeast Queensland and Tasmania made before the Federal Budget.

That makes 16 Veterans'and Families'Hubs on the way. 

Today the ADF Employment Offer Modernisation Program (ADF EOMP) released its suite of communication products for the upcoming initiatives under the Program. The purpose of this stage of communication is to inform members of key changes that will be implemented from May – July 2023. More detailed communication, including briefing sessions, will occur in Q1 and 2, 2023.

Background to the program:

• To attract and retain the ADF workforce needed to deliver our mission, we need a modern and competitive ADF employment offer.

• In 2019, Defence commenced the ADF EOMP to ensure a contemporary and competitive employment offer.

• Important changes to housing, leave and military salary have already been achieved under tranche one of the ADF EOMP.

• The next suite of initiatives will be implemented by 1 July 2023. These include:

• New allowance framework (effective 25 May 2023).

• New Categorisation and Location frameworks (effective 1 July 2023).

• Additional 5 days Basic Recreation Leave (effective 1 July 2023).

• To support any potential impacts from ADF EOMP initiatives, the trained force permanent salary rates will be increased by $2,000. Accordingly, the Reserve daily rates will increase by approximately $5.48 a day ($2,000 pro-rata). Trainee salary rates will also increase by a pro-rata amount of the trained force salary rate. This salary increase will be reflected in members’ pay from 8 June 2023.

• Defence is committed to contemporising the ADF remuneration and conditions of service benefits to better support the needs of current and future ADF members and their families.

There is more information, including the CDF’s letter to the ADF workforce and several factsheets on the pay and conditions website.  

DVA has a website with regularly updated numbers on claims and backlog.

Thousands of current and ex-service personnel will have a stronger voice through the new Queensland Veterans’ Council. Also identified are members of the Veterans Reference Group.

Townsville Mater Hospital has a new Veterans Liaison Officer (VLO) who will be working four days per week.  Her name is Charna and she currently works as the Complex Discharge Planner.

You can reach the VLO via:

P:  47274070

E:  VLO-NQ@mater.org.au

The referral process is very simple for Mater staff, patients or community services who may be facilitating an early referral prior to a patient's upcoming stay.

If the DECT is unanswered, it will divert to Allied Health Administration to be answered by staff, or the ability to leave a voicemail is also an option. A DVA patient can be referred at any time during their stay, and our VLO team will monitor DVA inpatients via our online patient system.

We do encourage DVA patients to access this service as required and have educated our staff to facilitate an early referral to VLO to ensure early discharge planning and in-hospital specialised support for this patient population.

For completeness, also info on TUH VLO at the link below. 

We want to make this process as clear and time efficient as possible moving forward.

As it currently stands a DVA patient at the Mater can also be referred to any of our Allied Health staff (as clinically indicated) to assist in best care delivery to meet their health needs.

Our Allied Health team includes; Physiotherapists, Occupational Therapists, Dietitians, Speech Pathology, Social Work, Complex Discharge Planner, Psychology and Diabetes Educators.

We also offer outpatient physiotherapy, inpatient rehabilitation, day rehabilitation under a specialist rehabilitation Doctor and a multidisciplinary outpatient pain program.

Operation NAVIGATOR was funded in the Federal Budget on 25 October 2022. This will support a three-year pilot to coach first-posting serving veteran arrivals in Townsville on how they might see their future. It is a preparation for the inevitable separation from the ADF, with some thought being put in early to be better prepared for when the time comes and a decision is made to transition to civilian life.

The average length of service in the ADF is 10 years; in Townsville, it is significantly less. 

The Australian Government recently agreed to Recommendation 1 of the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide Interim Report, which called for the development and passage of legislation to simplify and harmonise the framework for veterans’ compensation, rehabilitation and other entitlements.

Consultation on reforming veterans’ legislation has commenced today with the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) seeking submissions from the community.

Legislation extending the Incapacity Payments for Veterans Studying Pilot Program, and the Defence, Veterans’ and Families’ Acute Support Package will both go a long way to ensuring veterans and families get the support they need and deserve.

The Albanese Government has today responded to the 13 recommendations of the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide’s Interim Report.

The Royal Commission’s Interim Report is the culmination of the inquiry’s work to date, encompassing over 2,000 submissions, 178 private sessions and testimony from 208 witnesses.

The Interim Report’s 13 recommendations fall within three key themes: improving the claims process, Royal Commission administration and access to information by loved ones.

The Government has implemented one of the recommendations already (recommendation 5), agreed to nine, agreed in principle to one, and noted two others.

The nature of military service makes understanding the wellbeing of those who have served of vital importance. This report examines wellbeing outcomes such as employment status, income, education qualifications, housing circumstances, and social support for ex-serving Australian Defence Force (ADF) members and their families. Using linked data, this report expands information on the Veteran-centred model as part of an ongoing body of work in partnership with the Department of Veterans’ Affairs. This report is based on ex-serving ADF members who had served at least one day of service on or after 1 January 2001 and were ex-serving as of 31 December 2015 and uses the 2016 Census data as the primary source of data to inform wellbeing outcomes.

The Federal Labor Government has held the first of two Veterans Employment Round Tables, as precursor consultations to the Government’s Jobs and Skills Summit to better understand practical solutions to get more Aussie veterans and defence families into work.