The Alberta legislature resumes sitting on Monday, amid a growing unhoused population across the province and the deepening poverty experienced by many Albertans with disabilities.
Homelessness and disability poverty are interconnected. Canadians with disabilities are four times more likely to experience homelessness than other Canadians. For some people with disabilities, the combined suffering of poverty and housing precarity has led them to seek Medical Assistance in Dying.
The provincial government can fix these problems. A starting point would be to raise the income support that the government provides to people with disabilities through the Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped (AISH) program. Current levels of support leave people with disabilities living below the poverty line. However, the problems do not start or end with the amount of income support.
Here are three initiatives that the provincial government could implement now to ensure that Albertans with disabilities live safely and with dignity.
1. Ensure Fairness in AISH Applications and Appeals.
The application process for AISH is unfair. Consider one example. A doctor must certify that an applicant has a severe, permanent impairment that will substantially impair their ability to earn a livelihood. Yet, the form that doctors fill out does not ask about all of these criteria. Unless a doctor independently knows the AISH eligibility criteria, they are likely to provide an opinion that fails to satisfy the test.
If an applicant is denied AISH and chooses to appeal, they face further barriers. Appeals take time, leaving people languishing in poverty while they wait. Recent regulatory changes have further slowed the process. The policy manual governing appeals is not publicized and appellants are given confusing messages about what procedures to follow. Hearings are not recorded, making it difficult for appellants to prove that the process was unfair if they wish to challenge it in court.
Simple changes could help. To allow for greater transparency, the appeals policy manual should be made public and AISH appeal hearings should be recorded.
Additionally, the government could provide assistance to applicants. The Workers’ Compensation Board created the Appeals Advisor Model to assist injured workers and employers. This service provides free, confidential, independent advice with WCB claims and appeals. This model could be adopted to assist AISH applicants and appellants.
2. Revise Disability Income Supports to Empower People with Disabilities in Abusive Relationships
The structure of the AISH program risks perpetuating partner abuse. An individual who would otherwise qualify for AISH will receive less money (or possibly nothing at all) if their partner earns above a certain amount. This arrangement is a recipe for financial dependency. The AISH recipient cannot work because of their disability, but also cannot receive AISH. They rely on their partner for their basic needs, including food and shelter. Leaving an abusive relationship becomes unworkable.
3. Provide Meaningful Supports to Help People with Disabilities Work
Canadians with disabilities are less likely to be employed than other Canadians. Some of them are unable to work, others would like to but face barriers. Educational systems fail to meet their needs. Ableism and failure to accommodate disabilities may leave individuals with low self-esteem and without needed skills. Prejudice in workplaces mean that disabled people struggle to find work even when they have appropriate skills.
In a mandate letter dated August 3, 2023, the Alberta minister of Seniors, Community and Social Services was tasked with exploring the “feasibility of a ‘short-term disability’ program to better facilitate, where medically appropriate, the return of Albertans to work when medically able to do so.”
We applaud the goal of addressing disability unemployment but are concerned that implementing a short-term disability program will simply reduce income supports for vulnerable people who have few employment options. Instead, the provincial government must tackle the barriers to employment, including accessibility in educational systems and attitudes toward people living with disabilities. The federal government has taken steps in this direction, adopting the 2019 Accessible Canada Act, and the 2024 Employment Strategy for Canadians with Disabilities. Alberta could learn from these examples.
As it moves to address disability poverty and homelessness, the government must meaningfully engage with the disabled community, to breathe life into the commitment: “Nothing About Us, Without Us.”
Andrew Green, Robert Philp, Anna Lund and Adam Cembrowkski are members of Justice and Equity Alberta, a non-profit that seeks to protect and advance the human rights of marginalized people in Alberta through the legal system.