Submission to Ontario’s 2020 Pre-Budget Hearing
November 2019
When government funding for home and community services isn’t enough, community providers must cut services and increase client fees. Ontario Health Teams must include home and community services as core services, and these services need sufficient dedicated funding. We also advocate for a workforce strategy for community services.
Submission to 2019 Pre-Budget Hearings
January 2019
After almost a decade of flat-lined budgets, despite the significant increases in Ontario’s population of seniors and government’s interest both in expanding access and in shifting care from the acute and long-term care sectors to the community, Ontario’s in-home and community support services received approximately a 2% increase to their base funding last year. This increase was very welcomed, but not enough to fully mitigate years of neglect.
Submission to 2018 Pre-Budget Hearings
January 2018
We appreciate that the demands on health care budgets are fierce and competitive, and that money is not available to simply grow the provincial health sector. However, within the dollars available, Ontario must increase and protect funding in support of in-home care and community support services because senior citizens across Ontario will and must age at home.
Open Letter to the Minister of Health Canada and the Ontario Minister of Health and Long-Term Care
January 2017
Older Canadians need programmes and national standards to promote health and independence. Within the dollars available, Canada’s leaders must protect funding for in-home care and community services. Care Watch beseeches federal and provincial ministries to move beyond political maneuverings to enact a national home and community care framework.
November 2016
Community social and support services are critical components of primary health care. Services to support autonomous living for older adults, people with disabilities, and persons with chronic illnesses are critical to the success of any home and community care plan.
September 2016
Care Watch recognizes the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care’s leadership in restructuring home and community care, but there are still some missing pieces. We believe the government of Ontario as a whole, not one ministry, should be responsible for addressing the wellbeing of older Ontarians. Home care should not be linked only to the medical system. Also, we see no real discussion about how to pay for services.
July 2016
We support “patient-centeredness” and “client choice” and would add a third principle – public service to Ontarians. We also recommend funding community agencies to coordinate care; basing the system on not-for-profit organizations; investing in personal support workers; expanding services that keep people healthy at home; and delivering consistent, reliable, and adequately funded services across the province
February 2016
Community social and support services are critical components of primary health care. Services to support autonomous living for older adults, people with disabilities, and persons with chronic illnesses are critical to the success of any home and community care plan.
Care Watch 