Long Term Care Homes Being Pushed to the Brink, OANHSS Warns

Remarks to Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs (pdf format)

Submission (pdf format)

Funding Fact Sheet  (pdf format)

Liberal Campaign Brochure - $6,000 Promise (pdf format)

TORONTO (December 7, 2006) – The McGuinty government is writing a prescription for failure in long term care. The province has not delivered on its funding promise of three years ago, and now it threatens to make matters worse by placing new regulatory demands on homes without providing the means to achieve them.

“Consistent and chronic underfunding is pushing many homes to the edge,” said Donna Rubin, CEO of the Ontario Association of Non-Profit Homes and Services for Seniors (OANHSS) in a pre-budget submission to the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs.

“I regularly hear from homes that they are in dire financial straights,” Rubin stated. “Some are looking to scale back and lay off staff, and some are even talking about how they may have to wind down their operations.”

Representing the not-for-profit long term care providers in Ontario, OANHSS appeared before the committee at Queen’s Park to make an appeal to the provincial government on behalf of the 26,000 seniors living in its member homes.

“We’re asking the McGuinty government to honour its commitment to increase funding for care by $6,000 per resident. That’s what it promised in the last election, and that’s what it should deliver before the next election,” said Rubin.

Ontario Health and Long-Term Care Minister George Smitherman has denied that this promise was ever made. Today, OANHSS distributed copies of the Liberal campaign brochure which promised the $6,000 increase, along with a news article from March 2003 in which Premier Dalton McGuinty was reported as saying that “a Liberal government … would increase funding to long term care facilities to the tune of $430 million annually.”

Minister Smitherman maintains that the government has put an additional $740 million into the long term care envelope over the past three years. While technically true, most of this money was allocated to systems improvements, new beds, new initiatives and some minor inflationary adjustments. Only about $173 million went into the operating budgets of homes to support resident care. 

“We’re not saying that these system improvements aren't good things to do. They are. But our point is that improving resident care and services must be the first priority. That’s where the need is. Yet only a small portion of the increased funding is getting to the bedsides of residents,” Rubin noted.

For the Liberal government to fulfill its pledge, the next budget will have to inject an additional $277 million into the operating budgets of long tem care homes.

“However, that’s only going to get us to where we should have been two or three years ago,” Rubin noted. “Now with the introduction of Bill 140 – the proposed Long-Term Care Homes Act – we’re facing a significant increase in regulatory requirements that will divert more staff time and resources to non-care functions.”

This issue has to be addressed as well, or Bill 140 will actually result in a reduction, rather than an improvement, in the level of care and services for residents. OANHSS is urging the province to analyze what added financial burden will be placed on homes as a result of the proposed new legislation, and at a minimum, increase operating funding by that amount. This would be in addition to the $277 million noted above.

“You can’t continually ask homes to do more – care for residents who are older and more chronically ill than ever before, look after an increasingly large population of people with dementia and behavioural problems, meet new standards and new regulatory requirements, provide enhanced programs and enriched environments – all without giving them the resources they need,” said Rubin.

Recently, OANHSS conducted a province-wide program that had MPPs volunteering their time at long term care homes in their ridings. By ‘shadowing’ nursing and personal care staff in these homes, MPPs saw for themselves what is needed to improve the quality of life of residents.

“I know these MPPs came away with a better understanding of the realities of long term care, and our homes and residents are now counting on their support as government considers its spending priorities for next year,” said Rubin.

– 30 –

For further information, contact:

Ontario Association of Non-Profit Homes & Services for Seniors
7050 Weston Road, Suite 700, Woodbridge, Ontario L4L 8G7
(P) 905-851-8821
(F) 905-851-0744

Comments or questions about our site?
Contact Debbie Humphreys at 905-851-8821 ext. 233
 Media Enquiries
© Copyright 2008 OANHSS

OANHSS Privacy Policy

OANHSS members include not-for-profit providers of long term care, services and housing for seniors in Ontario.
Members include municipal and charitable long term care homes, non-profit nursing homes,
seniors' housing projects and community service agencies.