New Brunswick veteran's disability claim stuck in limbo

There was a time when you couldn't separate René Houle from his guitar as he hosted family gatherings and regaled loved ones with music. 

"I started playing in my 40's … my wife at some point said we'll buy you a guitar and you'll take some lessons and I just love it," Houle said in an interview from his home in Dieppe. 

But in the last year, the retired 58-year old's world has gone significantly more quiet, and his guitar lies in a corner of his home, unplayed. 

Houle suffered a stroke last fall, and through a series of tests, doctors found that his hearing has been degenerating from a combination of aging and his 35 years of experience with the Canadian Armed Forces and RCMP. His work, which included peacekeeping as a soldier, brought him into loud and stressful environments.

Either job — with the army or the RCMP — would make him eligible for the disability benefit, according to the description of the program on the government's website.

The diagnosis of his hearing problem was life-changing, said Houle, who had worked as a solider in logistical health and safety when he was with the army.

"I was crying when they told me how much my hearing loss wasn't good because I kind of knew what it meant for me," he said.

In an attempt to fight back against his loss of hearing, Houle filed a disability claim on Jan. 27 and was told that the process would take some time. Houle hoped that the claim would result in getting a hearing aid to correct the problem.

Hearings aids for both ears could cost about $4,000, he was told.

But as the year draws to a close and his hearing continues to worsen, Houle is uncertain why his claim has not yet been approved despite, multiple followups. 

Houle said he was informed in October by a representative of Veterans Affairs that there is a backlog stretching back to 2019 of cases that need to be reviewed.

"I was a concerned about the fact that although my case is very simple, and they are telling me that it shouldn't be a problem to get approved, yet there seems to be such a backlog right now that they cannot tell me a time when they are going to get to my request and approve it."

In a statement to CBC News, Veterans Affairs Canada stated the current waiting times for disability benefits is unacceptable. The department was not able to comment on the status of Houle's case for privacy reasons.

Spokesperson Marc Lescoutre noted that between 2015-16 and 2019-20, the department received 40 per cent more disability benefit applications, including an increase of more than 75 per cent in first applications.