Queen Street News Toronto

HEALTH : Assesing Your Home Health Care Needs
Given the choice, most of us would prefer to
remain in our own homes or apartments rather
than make a move to a retirement residence or
long-term care home. In some cases, this is not
possible because we can no longer live
independently...safely. Home Health Care
products and equipment and Community
Support Services are intended to allow you to
live in your own home safely and as
independently as possible through the provision
of a variety of care and supportive services.
Getting Started The best place to go to access
these services is through your local Community
Care Access Centre. There your needs will be
thoroughly assessed and the most appropriate
equipment and services will be recommended.
Depending upon your needs, some of the
services may be covered under Ministry of
Health funding, regardless of your financial
situation. You may also access a service
provider directly or wish to retain additional
services, in which case you usually must pay for
the full cost of the services. Depending upon
your financial situation and the individual
service provider, subsidies may be available.
Finding an appropriate Home Health Care
Provider and Community Support Service is the
next step.
What to Look For Choosing a Community
Support Service provider is different from
choosing a retirement residence or long-term
care home since service delivery is more
intangible - there are no “bricks and mortar”
that you can touch and feel. It is prudent to visit
the offices of the provider - is the office
professional in appearance, clean and well
organized? - You can tell a great deal about a
provider by the condition of their premises. You
may also have a friend or relative that uses their
services who can tell you about the quality of
the services.
A variety of products and equipment can be sourced
from a Home Health Care retail store. It is preferable
to deal with a facility that stocks a variety of products
and has trained and experienced staff. Healthtime
Living Specialties at 1340 Danforth Ave. is exactly
that. Certified fitters will tend to your needs.
Deliveries and home visits can be arranged. Just drop
in or call them at 416-693-7676 or visit their web site
at healthtimelivingspecialties.com. They can
expertly assess and fill your needs.
Canada Gives MORE $$ To Seniors Than New Canadians
“Canada Pensions
Only in Canada It is interesting to know that
the federal Government of Canada allows: A
monthly pension of :
$1890.00 to a simple refugee $ 580.00 in social
aid $2470.00 monthly X 12 months $28,920.00
annual income.
By comparison the Old Age Pension of a senior
citizen who has contributed to the development
of our beautiful big country during 40 or 50
years CANNOT receive more than: amount:
$1012.00 in Old Age Pension
X 12 months $12,144.00 annual income
A difference of : $16,776.00 per year Perhaps
our senior citizens should ask for the Status
of Refugees instead of applying for Old Age
Pension. Let us send this message to as many
Canadians as possible and maybe the allowance
of refugees could then be reduced to $1012.00
and that of our Canadian pensioners raised to
$2470.00 per month. (who actually deserve it)
the money that they have been paying in all
taxes for 40 or 50 years. INCREDIBLE NONSENSE
!!! OUR CANADIAN SENIORS CITIZENS DESERVE
BETTER!!”
This is false:
The short-term financial support for refugees
does not compare to the lifetime pension
benefits for Canada's seniors.
The facts
Refugees don’t receive more financial
assistance from the federal government than
Canadian pensioners.
A letter to the editor of a Canadian newspaper
contained this incorrect information. In it, a
one-time, start-up payment provided to some
refugees in Canada was mistaken for an
ongoing, monthly payment. Unfortunately,
although the newspaper published a
clarification, the misleading information had
already spread widely over e-mail and the
internet.
In truth, about three quarters of resettled
refugees receive financial assistance from the
federal government, for a limited time, and at
levels lower than Canadian pensioners. They
are known as government-assisted refugees.
We have to remember that many of these
people have fled from unimaginable hardship,
and have lived in refugee camps for several
years. Others are victims of trauma or torture
in their home countries. Many arrive with little
more than a few personal belongings, if that.
Canada has a long humanitarian tradition of
accepting refugees and helping them start
their new lives here.
For this reason, a government-assisted
refugee receives a one-time amount of up to
$1,830 from the
federal government to
cover essentials —
basic, start-up needs
like staples, furniture
and clothing. They also
receive a temporary
monthly allowance for
food and shelter that is
based on provincial
social assistance
rates. In Ontario, for
example, a single
refugee would receive
$768 per month. This
assistance
is
temporary — lasting
only for one year or until they can find a job,
whichever comes first.
This short-term support for refugees is a far
cry from the lifetime benefits for Canada’s
seniors. The Old Age Security (OAS) program,
for example, provides people who have lived in
Canada for at least 10 years with a pension at
age 65. The Guaranteed Income Supplement
(GIS) is an additional monthly benefit for lowincome
pensioners. The Canada Pension Plan
(CPP), or Quebec Pension Plan (QPP) for
people in Quebec, pays a monthly retirement
pension to people who have worked and
contributed to the plan over their career. In
October 2007, Canadian seniors received an
average of $478.28 in OAS benefits and
$481.46 in CPP retirement benefits ($393.84
in QPP). Lower income OAS recipients also
qualified for an average of an additional
$393.99 in GIS benefits. In Ontario, for
example, a pensioner would receive
approximately $959 per month. from
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
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