Post-Traumatic Issues

Craig Pottie of Truro, Nova Scotia is fighting mad. He's a natural-born fighting man, so that's not surprising. He served eight years in the Canadian military, after all. From 1988 through to 1995 Mr. Pottie was a member of the Canadian air force. Something obviously went askew, since he served most of his time in the military as a clerk on a naval vessel.

He is, nonetheless, obviously battle-scarred.

To the extent that he suffers from a variety of mental health issues. He has been receiving psychiatric treatment since 2002 every few weeks over in Halifax. Counselling and treatment for anxiety and panic issues. Throw in post-traumatic stress disorder, a result of his eight years of service in the Canadian Forces. A clerk, on a naval vessel.

For six years he's been travelling from Truro to Halifax to see his psychiatrist. Veterans Affairs paying for the services received, as they are tasked to do. And his travel costs that amounted to roughly $180 monthly to cover taxi costs between Truro and Halifax were paid. But guidelines inform that government would discontinue covering travel costs.

Travel costs are ordinarily reimbursed for attending treatment available normally within a resident's immediate, or closest geographic area. Mr. Pottie was given a one-year notice of the change in his coverage. The policy of government has always been to reimburse veterans for travel to the appropriate treatment centre nearest to their residence.

So here's the issue in a nutshell. Mr. Pottie feels entitled to travel 45 minutes distance from Truro to Halifax in a taxi. He feels entitled to having Veterans Affairs pay for that travel. Without that reimbursement of costs he insists he can no longer obtain the psychiatric treatment that presents as a "lifeline".

Veterans Affairs pays the freight for professional treatment for veterans. They have a policy that the treatment be obtained in the more immediate area, closer to where the veteran actually resides, in Truro, for example. The issue here is not whether the treatment itself will continue to be paid for, but whether treatment plus travel costs will be paid for.

"My life since (treatments stopped), by the week, day and month, continues to get worse to the point where I'm pretty much housebound ... and now I can't go see the one person who was the lifeline I had."

That sounds pretty serious, poor man. What is stopping him for pursuing his trips to Halifax on his own dime, using public transit? Not possible, sadly.

He has 'issues' dealing with large crowds.