Province continues to help low income residents with long-term care adjustments

The Alberta government will continue to assist eligible low-income residents when maximum accommodation charges in long term care settings rise on January 1, 2013, by increasing financial assistance through the Alberta Seniors Benefit and Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped programs.

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Edmonton - September 28, 2012 - The Alberta government will continue to assist eligible low-income residents when maximum accommodation charges in long-term care settings rise on January 1, 2013.

By increasing financial assistance through the Alberta Seniors Benefit (ASB) and Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped (AISH) programs, the government will offset a five per cent, or $2.80 per day increase, for recipients of those programs.

Alberta’s maximum charges for long-term care accommodations remain among the lowest in Canada, even with the increase, while low-income residents receiving ASB or AISH will continue to have among the highest minimum disposable income amounts.

This increase in accommodation charges will help ensure that residents continue to receive quality accommodations and related services, by helping long-term care operators meet rising accommodation costs.

“This increase in the regulated maximum accommodation charge carefully balances the need for operators to address rising costs, while ensuring that the charges paid by residents are reasonable,” said Health Minister Fred Horne. “And the increase in benefits to low-income residents ensures that their disposable income at the end of the month does not change.”

Residents in long-term care settings are responsible for paying charges that reflect the costs of providing room and board, including housekeeping services, staff wages, utilities and routine building maintenance. Resident health care costs are paid for by Alberta Health Services.

The adjusted rates will raise the maximum accommodation charges that operators can charge to:

Private room: $58.70 per day from $55.90, a maximum increase of $2.80 per day (for a maximum monthly charge of $1,785)
Semi Private room: $50.80 per day from $48.40, a maximum increase of $2.40 per day (for a maximum monthly charge of $1,545)
Standard Room: $48.15 per day from $45.85, a maximum increase of $2.30 per day (for a maximum monthly charge of $1,465).

About 8,300 of the approximately 14,500 Albertans in long-term care settings receive financial assistance through the ASB and AISH programs. The increases to ASB and AISH payments will cost government $14.4 million annually and will be paid for from existing budgets.

This adjustment reflects government’s commitment to reviewing and adjusting the charges regularly to avoid large one time increases in charges. The maximum accommodation charges were last adjusted by three per cent in February 2011. Prior to that, charges had not gone up since 2008.