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Veterans Affairs Minister Ginette Petitpas Taylor now says veterans of Canada’s Invictus Games team will have full health coverage in 2025, days after CBC News reported that veterans of the team will have to buy their own health insurance.
“We will continue to work with the Canadian Armed Forces, Soldier On, Invictus Games and other stakeholders to ensure this situation is rectified before the 2025 Invictus Games,” Petitpas Taylor told the House of Commons on Thursday.
NDP MP Rachel Blaney raised the issue in the House of Representatives after CBC News reported that Scott Snow, a veteran who was a member of Canada’s 2023 Invictus team, was on the hook for thousands of dollars in medical bills.
Snow went to Dusseldorf, Germany to compete in archery, rowing and wheelchair rugby. During his first rugby match, the wheelchair he was using fell backwards, causing him to fall onto the pitch floor and injuring his head, neck and spine.
Snow finished the match unaware of the damage the fall had caused, but after returning to Canada an X-ray revealed he had a cervical spine injury.
He underwent surgery to fuse his vertebrae. When the tingling in his legs did not stop, he had to undergo a second operation on his lower back.
Canadian military veteran Scott Snow says he has paid thousands in surgery bills after an injury he suffered while competing in the Invictus Games last year. Under current rules, only current members have medical coverage.
The Canadian Invictus team is managed by Soldier On, a semi-autonomous CAF program. Soldier On helps sick and injured CAF members and veterans recover through sporting, recreational and creative activities.
Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC) is also supporting the Invictus program by providing funding to Soldier On, including $16 million to enable Canada to host the 2025 games in Whistler BC and fund the team’s participation.
The Whistler games include skeleton bobsled, downhill skiing and snowboarding.
Snow says Soldier On and its officials never fully explained to him that veterans, unlike military members of the team, need health insurance to cover medical costs for injuries sustained during competition.
“It was just a side note. We were never taken aside to explain it and most people who paid attention to it just assumed that their credit card insurance or their CAA insurance would cover their health insurance,” he said.
Snow said his recovery has left him unable to climb the stairs in his home, forcing him to move into a retirement home that costs nearly $5,000 a month.
He said he also suffers from vision problems in his left eye, which occurred after he hit his head during the fall, but he had to stop vision therapy because he cannot afford the costs.
While reaching out to intercept a pass during Team Canada’s wheelchair rugby match against Team USA at the 2023 Invictus Games, Snow falls backward and hits his head on the field.
“Not one person has answered Soldier On’s phone since my injury, even though I’ve emailed and called them. Not once… have they reached out,” he said.
DND said it is working with Soldier On and its “partners and health insurers to determine what additional coverage can be implemented to ensure there are no gaps for participants after the event.”
The statement did not say how long that process will take, or whether that additional coverage will be in place by the time Canada hosts the 2025 Games in February.
