1. asset
levels for the home help and 100 % city-funded essential health and social
supports programs niveaux d’actif pour le programme d’aide familiale et les programmes
des services sociaux et de santÉ essentiels financÉs entiÉrement par la ville |
That Council approve that the Essential Health and Social Supports Program 100% City Funded and the Home Help Program, administered by the Employment and Financial Assistance Branch, increase the asset levels to those allowed under the Ontario Disability Support Program for the purpose of determining the eligibility of low income residents under these programs and that the resulting increased expenditures be tabled as part of the 2007 budget deliberations.
RECOMMANDATION
DU COMITÉ
Que le Conseil municipal d’accepter
que le Programme des services sociaux et de santé essentiels financés
entièrement par la Ville et le Programme d’aide familiale, gérés par la
Direction des services d'emploi et d'aide financière, augmentent les niveaux
d’actif aux niveaux admis en vertu du Programme ontarien de soutien aux
personnes handicapées, pour ainsi déterminer l’admissibilité des résidents à
faible revenu aux termes de ces programmes, et que l’augmentation des dépenses
résultante soit incluse dans les délibérations budgétaires de 2007.
DOCUMENTATION
1. Deputy City Manager, Community and Protective Services report dated 19 January 2006 (ACS2006-CPS-EFA-0002).
Report to/Rapport au :
Health, Recreation and Social Services Committee
Comité de la santé, des loisirs et
des services sociaux
and Council / et au Conseil
19 January 2006 / le 19 janvier 2006
Submitted by/Soumis par : Steve Kanellakos, Deputy City Manager/Directeur
municipal adjoint,
Community and Protective Services/Services communautaires et de
protection
Contact
Person/Personne ressource : Danielle Massé, Director
Employment and Financial Assistance/Services
d’emploi et d’aide financière
(613) 580-2424 x 43080,
danielle.masse@ottawa.ca
REPORT RECOMMENDATION
That the Health, Recreation and Social Services Committee recommend that Council approve that the Essential Health and Social Supports Program 100% City Funded and the Home Help Program, administered by the Employment and Financial Assistance Branch, increase the asset levels to those allowed under the Ontario Disability Support Program for the purpose of determining the eligibility of low income residents under these programs and that the resulting increased expenditures be tabled as part of the 2007 budget deliberations.
RECOMMANDATION DU RAPPORT
Que le Comité de la santé, des loisirs et des
services sociaux recommande au Conseil municipal d’accepter que le Programme
des services sociaux et de santé essentiels financés entièrement par la Ville
et le Programme d’aide familiale, gérés par la Direction des services d'emploi
et d'aide financière, augmentent les niveaux d’actif aux niveaux admis en vertu
du Programme ontarien de soutien aux personnes handicapées, pour ainsi
déterminer l’admissibilité des résidents à faible revenu aux termes de ces
programmes, et que l’augmentation des dépenses résultante soit incluse dans les
délibérations budgétaires de 2007.
On November 17,
2005 the Seniors Advisory Committee asked that the Health Recreation and Social Services Committee (HRSS) recommend
to Council:
1. That the
Employment and Financial Assistance Branch of the Community and Protective
Service Department evaluate the allowable assets in order to explore increasing
the eligibility to respond to the need for service by low-income seniors.
2. And that this
evaluation investigate the number of Ottawa low-income seniors that are
ineligible simply because they have assets that are above the Program's $3000
ceiling.
Council carried
the above motion on November 30, 2005.
The Essential Health and Social Supports Program (EHSS) is 100% funded by the City of Ottawa and approved by City Council. It supports eligible low-income residents with the purchase of items or services such as dental care, vision care, prosthetic appliances, diabetic supplies, hearing aids, mobility devices, incontinent supplies, bathroom aids, respiratory supplies, essential appliances and funerals and burials. Many EHSS applicants have one-time requirements for the above mentioned items or services, while others have longer term needs that require ongoing case management by EFA Staff. Of those individuals with ongoing health related needs, 86% are seniors.
The Home Help Program supports quality of life for eligible residents of Ottawa by purchasing home help services from six not-for-profit and for-profit organizations in the community. The services are provided to support independent living arrangements and to enable residents to participate in the life of their community. The program is 80% provincially funded and is currently providing an average of nine hours of homemaking services per month to 900 clients. Approximately 60% of Home Help clients are in receipt of social assistance (mostly recipients of the Ontario Disability Support Program) and the majority of the balance are on a fixed income pension such as Old Age Security. Approximately 34% of the Home Help recipients are seniors.
Eligibility for both the EHSS and Home Help programs is based on a needs test that considers assets, income and allowable expenses. Refer to Appendix for asset levels.
The 100% City Funded EHSS program
was established in 1998 to fill a need created when the Province abolished the
Special Assistance and Supplementary Aid Programs. These were cost-shared
programs that had existed as part of the General Welfare Act and the Family
Benefits Act respectively. When the EHSS program was implemented, it was
determined that the EHSS and Home Help programs, both serving low income
residents, should share the same financial needs test. The Home Help Program
existed prior to EHSS and had traditionally allowed the same level of assets as
the Family Benefits Act (ie. $3000 for singles), therefore the EHSS program
also adopted the $3000 maximum asset level. The Province has since raised the
asset level for a single person to $5000 under the Ontario Disability
Support Program Act (replaced the Family Benefits Act), however the
asset rates used for the Home Help and EHSS programs have remained unchanged.
In order to understand the impact of
the EHSS and Home Help Programs’ asset levels on eligibility rates, the EFA
Branch reviewed the case files of applicants who were ineligible for these
programs due to their asset levels during the period of September 2003 to
August 2005. The findings of this review are as follows:
·
Of the 267 EHSS files (of which 78%
were seniors) that were ineligible or terminated due to asset levels, 105 cases
(or 39%) would have been eligible had the higher asset level of $5000 been in
place
·
Of the 116 Home Help files (of which
79% were seniors) that were ineligible or terminated due to asset levels, 26
cases (or 22%) would have been eligible had the higher asset level of $5000
been in place
There are few other resources
available in the community to assist those low-income residents who do not
qualify for EHSS or Home Help. Home support services are offered by agencies in
the community however there is a cost to the client for these services.
Similarly, low income residents with health related needs who do not qualify
for EHSS may attempt to negotiate payment plans for necessary items or
services, or may go without.
In conclusion, given that there has
been no increase to the asset levels used to determine eligibility for these
programs since 1998, and given that these programs provide the City’s more
vulnerable residents with necessary supports they need to maintain a healthy
quality of life and independent living arrangements, and given that these
programs support low income residents, many of whom are seniors on fixed
pensions, the EFA Branch supports the alignment of asset levels used for the
EHSS and Homehelp programs, with the Provincial asset levels used for the ODSP
program.
CONSULTATION
Summary information from this report was presented to the Poverty Issues Advisory Committee (PIAC) on February 14, 2006 and to the Seniors’ Advisory Committee on February 15, 2006.
PIAC unanimously approved the following motion and requested that it be forwarded to staff to be incorporated into their report:
That Poverty Issues Advisory Committee (PIAC) recommends that the Asset Levels used to determine eligibility for EHSS and Home Help be increased to the levels used for ODSP recipients.
That Seniors Advisory Committee (SAC) recommends that the Asset Levels used to determined eligibility for EHSS and Home Help be increased to the levels used for ODSP recipients.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
The estimated additional annualized cost for 2007 of this
recommendation is $204,000 gross and $157,000 net, broken down as follows:
·
EHSS 100% City $133,000 gross and
net
·
Home Support $71,000 gross and
$24,000 net
SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION
Appendix 1: Current maximum asset levels used
for EHSS and Home Help programs, as well as ODSP.
DISPOSITION
The Employment and
Financial Assistance Branch of the Community and Protective Services Department
will implement the directions of Council.
The current maximum asset levels used for EHSS and Home Help programs, as well as ODSP
|
FAMILY COMPOSITION |
CURRENT EHSS and HOME HELP LEVELS |
CURRENT ODSP LEVELS |
|
Single |
3000.00 |
5000.00 |
|
Single - 1 dependant |
3500.00 |
5500.00 |
|
Couple |
5500.00 |
7500.00 |
|
Couple -
1 dependant |
6000.00 |
8000.00 |
Assets include: cash,
bonds, debentures, stocks, certificates, cash surrender value of a life
insurance policy, interest in property, assets held in trust and available to
the family, and other property which can be readily converted into cash.
Exceptions (not defined as assets) include: principle residence, business assets (up to $10,000), student loans, pre-paid funerals, locked-in RRSPs