Military vet is tired of having to prove to the government that he lost his legs

The retired veteran told the Edmonton Journal that permanent injuries like his sometimes involve multiple applications to several companies and departments to get benefits, such as insurance companies.

Although the Veterans Independence Program made some changes that mean an application can be filled once every three years instead of once every year, Franklin said he has to send forms yearly for his general pension.

Franklin said the shift from standard monthly pension for veterans to pay based on lost income depending on their injury puts focus on rank.

"The problem is a corporal’s injury is worth less than a captain’s injury," Franklin said. "That, for us, is brutal."

The Huffington Post reported that Franklin has written about his complications with paperwork to get his benefits before.

He wrote a blog post for The Huffington Post Canada, saying that his wheelchair has been taken from him twice.

"First while in hospital due to lack of payment when (the Department of Defence) and VAC were in argument about who pays," Franklin wrote. "The second was just last year when upon getting a new chair it was felt by VAC that I didn't get the appropriate paperwork -- which was a doctor's note saying 'Due to transfemoral amputations, Paul Franklin needs a new wheelchair.'"

Franklin, who also makes motivational speeches and and advocate for veterans, said he is speaking out to help others.

"It’s been 10 years and they still haven’t figured out I’m an amputee," he said. "It’s more for the dudes that can’t do it. I don’t want this to be a hindrance to someone getting the care they need."

In a statement, Veterans Affairs spokeswoman Janice Summerby said, "VAC has an initiative in progress to streamline the administrative process for Veterans Affairs Canada and specifically to reduce the number of forms, and the frequency and number of pages that are sent to veterans."