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It is nearly three years since the last federal election and Réseau FADOQ concludes that the Government of Canada has abandoned the promises it made to senior voters.
In 2021, the Liberal Party of Canada pledged to enhance the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS), create a career extension tax credit and improve the caregiver tax credit.
None of these measures were included in the federal budget unveiled on Tuesday.
“We are deeply disappointed that none of these commitments were included in the budget. These are measures that would make a difference in the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. The Liberal government had the opportunity, among other things, to tackle the financial distress of people aged 65 and over by increasing the Guaranteed Income Supplement. These people voices were not heard,” states Réseau FADOQ president Gisèle Tassé-Goodman.
In addition, the federal government continues to exclude people aged 65 to 74 from the 10% increase in the Old Age Security pension, whereas this increase is paid to people aged 75 and over.
“At Réseau FADOQ, our members aged 65 to 74 speak to us every day about this discrimination. We shouldn’t have two classes of seniors in our society, but that’s what’s happening now,” stresses Ms. Tassé-Goodman.
Keep in mind that a person under 75 receiving only Old Age Security and GIS has an annual income of just $21,345.72, which is below the federal government’s poverty line. With such an income, it’s impossible to cope with rising consumer prices without having to make agonizing everyday life choices.
Actions to come, but complex deployment
The Government of Canada took the opportunity of the budget to announce funding of $1.5 billion over five years to Health Canada for the establishment of the National Pharmacare Program. The new federal funding would not replace Québec’s existing public drug insurance program, but rather enhance and expand it.
Réseau FADOQ emphasizes that the rollout of the federal government’s National Prescription Drug Insurance Plan is timid, since it only targets universal coverage for numerous contraceptives and certain diabetes medications.
The Government of Canada has also reiterated its commitment to introducing a safe long-term care bill to support new national standards and improve health care in long-term care residences such as CHLSDs.
Although these two gestures demonstrate a political will, the Government of Canada nonetheless emphasizes that they will have to be implemented in conjunction with the provinces and territories, foreshadowing a long and complex deployment process.
Housing efforts
The federal government has also announced several measures to curb the current housing crisis. In particular, it plans to encourage the construction of housing on public land, or land owned by Canada Post and National Defence. The federal government also wants to convert under-utilized federal office buildings into housing and tax vacant land to encourage housing construction.
