Radio interview – ABC Sydney

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
ABC Radio Sydney
Evenings with Indira Naidoo
Tuesday 1 August 2023

SUBJECTS: DVA White Card eligibility, access to mental health support, veteran data 

INDIRA NAIDOO, HOST: Australia's welfare system can be a minefield to navigate. Have you thrown your arms up in frustration? I know a lot of people who have, but you could be missing out on lots of benefits and this could be the case with the Department of Veterans’ Affairs White Card. A staggering 10 per cent of Australians are eligible for a White Card, but you may be like me and maybe hadn't heard of a White Card before. So, to tell us about the White Card and the benefits you could be getting, with me is the Minister for Veterans' Affairs, Matt Keogh. Hello to you, Matt.

MATT KEOGH, MINISTER FOR VETERANS’ AFFAIRS: Hello, great to be with you.

INDIRA NAIDOO: Now, this White Card, now, I feel terrible I hadn't heard of it before. So, who's eligible for it, Matt?

MINISTER KEOGH: So, eligibility for a Veterans' Affairs White Card is for any person that has served in the Australian Defence Force for at least one day, full time. And it provides coverage to any of those Defence Force members for any health related condition that they may have related to their service in the Defence Force. But it also covers support for mental health services, regardless of whether they can link that back to their Defence Force service or not. So, it's a way of making sure we're providing appropriate support and coverage for our veterans for any mental health conditions, as well as any other physical ailments that may have resulted from their time with Defence.

INDIRA NAIDOO: All right, now, a lot of people would be surprised that you only have to serve for one day to be eligible.

MINISTER KEOGH: Look, that's probably right. And it does mean that people who are still serving in Defence are eligible for this card. And anyone who's joined the Defence Force since 2016 gets signed up pretty much automatically now to make sure that they've got that. And it's the way in which we ensure that they've got access to the mental health supports and services that they might need, either during service or after they've left service.

INDIRA NAIDOO: Well, in this health coverage, Matt, there are things like private psychological support services, that mental health support that you mentioned, and coverage of certain types of cancers for people with three-plus years service. So, it's actually so much broader, again, than I think people would assume.

MINISTER KEOGH: Yes. So, there is certain additional categories that we’ll cover automatically so for cancer or tuberculosis, but they are much more limited for people that served in particular wars or certain periods of time in the 1970s through the 1990s where we saw particular, if you like, spikes in sorts of medical conditions related directly to the sorts of service that were occurring at those times. So, yeah, there are some specific categories that also get picked up like that. It also extends to Australian Peacekeeping contingents, where they get picked up that might be broader than just your normal Australian Defence Force members. So, it does have pretty broad coverage, especially because, from a mental health point of view, it will cover anyone who's been in service for a day, as well as where anyone can show that they've got a condition because of their service.

INDIRA NAIDOO: Okay. With me is Matt Keogh, the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs. We're talking about this Department of Veterans’ Affairs White Card. Something like 10 per cent of Australians are eligible for it. The eligibility has just been updated, so we're just catching up with who can get what -

MINISTER KEOGH: It's probably important to clarify that element. So, this extension to cover mental health, which was the real broadening, happened back in 2017. There hasn't been any change since then, so this isn't new in that respect. And also the eligibility, as I said, is for people that have served at least one day. So, that goes up to about 581,000 veterans that we identified in the last Census that would be eligible for a Veteran’s Card. Certainly not all of them have a White Card, and some of them even have a Gold Card, which covers all conditions where they've got more serious conditions under the legislation that applies here. But it is a big group of people, but it's within that 581,000 total veteran cohort that we have in Australia.

INDIRA NAIDOO: And Matt, if you're married or a de facto or separated or in a same sex relationship, you could also be eligible for some of these benefits.

MINISTER KEOGH: No, the White Card only relates to the veteran themselves. Okay, that's important to understand. So, it is really to cover the support and health support and services that a veteran may require. It is true that if a veteran is on a Gold Card, which is a different category of support for people that have got the most complex health needs as a result of their service, that can extend across to cover some partners and widows, but the White Card is of support to the veteran themselves.

INDIRA NAIDOO: And what about TransLink services, is that correct? That up to 50 per cent you can get off using those services. 

MINISTER KEOGH: So, there are some companies that have elected to provide discounts to veterans who hold a White Card or a Gold Card, and we're very pleased to encourage all businesses to provide that sort of discount to support our veterans. But it's up to each individual business as to how they decide to determine eligibility for that sort of discount and who is covered. And certainly we've seen State Governments across the board offering different types of discounts in different states and territories to veterans that either have a Gold Card or a White Card. And veterans are very welcoming of that as well.

INDIRA NAIDOO: When you add a lot of these supports, particularly in the health area, the medical area, there could have been thousands of dollars in savings people could be making if they had a White Card or if they knew that they were eligible for one.

MINISTER KEOGH: Well, certainly if someone has a condition, whether that's a physical health condition, or a mental health condition as a result of having served in our Defence Force. We want to make sure that we're covering them and providing them with the support and health services that they need. That's the intention of the White Card here. And I guess if they are eligible for that and they're not accessing that support, then this would save them money. We do spend an awful lot of money as an Australian Government supporting our veterans with mental health services, with physical health support and services, with compensation payments and income support payments. And it's important. And that's why it's really good to have this sort of conversation with you and your listeners, to make sure that people who might have served a few decades ago and aren't aware of the expansion of White Card eligibility that occurred back in 2017 to cover mental health, for example, to make sure people are aware that is available. It is something they can access through the Department of Veterans' Affairs. We want to make sure that people get access to the things that they're entitled to and the supports that they're entitled to so that they get what they need.

INDIRA NAIDOO: Yeah, terrific. Matt, I wanted to ask you about another matter. Last week, journalist Rick Morton in the Saturday Paper ran a story claiming that sensitive medical records of 3,000 veterans and their widows and others had been given to a university without their knowledge. Were you aware of this practice?

MINISTER KEOGH: I wasn't aware of this until it became a matter that went before the Information Commissioner. But it is an important service that's there to provide veterans with support and making sure that they get the best mix of medications and support for their health conditions. That's the way that that program has been running for some time now. A considerable amount of time. 

INDIRA NAIDOO: Yeah, two decades, apparently, this program.

MINISTER KEOGH: That's right, yes. And so it's providing great benefit to veterans. And certainly the process that's been undertaken, which I believe was reported on in the article relates back to 2017. And from that we've certainly made improvements around making sure that there is good disclosure, if you like, about how that information for each veteran will be used to benefit them. Really what's happening here is we're taking their information, getting the expert advice on their conditions to make sure that they get the best support for the medications that they need for their conditions. It's all about making sure veterans get the best care and support that they can get.

INDIRA NAIDOO: Okay, so, Matt, you can give a guarantee that data then, isn't being handed over without permission from veterans.

MINISTER KEOGH: All veterans are given upfront notice when they're issued with a Gold Card. And this is for veterans that are accessing this program through a Gold Card, that their information may be shared with other health providers to ensure that they get the best level of care. They can opt out of that if they wish to, and they've always had that option, but clearly that wasn't being made as clear as it should have been. But they've certainly got that option to opt out and that's made clear. So, they can continue to access this service, but if they don't wish to, then that's completely up to them.

INDIRA NAIDOO: Okay. And if any listeners want more information on the DVA White Card, where should they go, Matt?

MINISTER KEOGH: They should go to the DVA website and to look at what they might be eligible to make claims about or to register to get a DVA White Card for the non-liability mental health support.

INDIRA NAIDOO: Okay, terrific. Thanks for talking to us on Evenings tonight.

MINISTER KEOGH: Great to be with you. Thanks.

INDIRA NAIDOO: Minister for Veterans’ Affairs Matt Keogh, talking to us on ABC Radio.

END

Open Arms – Veterans & Families Counselling provides 24/7 free confidential crisis support for current and ex-serving ADF personnel and their families on 1800 011 046 or the Open Arms website. Safe Zone Support provides anonymous counselling on 1800 142 072. Defence All-Hours Support Line provides support for ADF personnel on 1800 628 036 or the Defence Health Portal. Defence Member and Family Helpline provides support for Defence families on 1800 624 608