Archive for the ‘Social Security’ Category
Why the Canada Disability Benefit won’t end disability poverty, and how it could
Thursday, November 28th, 2024
It won’t be a game-changer, but it could help many if eligibility and access expand and clawbacks are not allowed to erode possibly its entire value… Though the benefit will not fill the poverty gap for hundreds of thousands of people, it could still reduce their depth of poverty… If it is intended to fill the poverty gaps in provincial and territorial social-assistance programs, the benefit amount should reflect that… Poverty is a policy choice – one that is inconsistent with Canada’s human-rights obligations.
Tags: disabilities, poverty, rights, standard of living
Posted in Social Security Policy Context | No Comments »
It’s not too late to fix a government benefit that could lift thousands more Canadians out of poverty
Tuesday, November 26th, 2024
… its very design ensures that [the Canada Disability Benefit] will help far too few people in need. There are two key reasons for its underwhelming impact: unnecessarily restrictive eligibility criteria, and the wildly insufficient size of the benefit… The CRA applies rigid, and often arbitrary criteria, to establish eligibility — especially with respect to mental health conditions and chronic illness… The other critical flaw in the Canada Disability Benefit’s design is the woefully low benefit of only $2,400 per year.
Tags: disabilities, featured, Health, participation, poverty, standard of living
Posted in Social Security Debates | No Comments »
New Report Finds Record Increases in Child Poverty Rates in Ontario
Wednesday, November 20th, 2024
“For six years and counting, the provincial government has kept the Ontario Works rates frozen, despite record high cost of living and a 20% increase in the prices of goods and services since 2018”… The report card lays out an evidence-based, inclusive and achievable path toward ending child and family poverty in Ontario. It offers over 20 recommendations that would address gaps in income security, child care, child welfare, youth mental health, housing, food security, and decent work.
Tags: budget, featured, jurisdiction, mental Health, poverty, standard of living
Posted in Social Security Debates | No Comments »
Canada sees ‘unprecedented rise’ in child poverty rates. Here’s what the numbers in a new report tell us
Wednesday, November 20th, 2024
The new national report card, Ending Child Poverty: The Time is Now, shows that the jump in poverty rates in 2021 was the first increase in 10 years, and the latest increase in 2022 was the largest on record. It has been five years since the federal government legislated their poverty reduction strategy, but families are living in deeper poverty than they were in 2015, the year from which the government measures progress.
Tags: jurisdiction, poverty, standard of living
Posted in Social Security History | No Comments »
Ending child poverty: the time is now
Wednesday, November 20th, 2024
Across all family types, families were living in deeper poverty than they were in 2015, the year the federal poverty reduction strategy measures progress from. Custom data shows that the Canada Child Benefit has lost its power to sustain poverty reduction and that income inequality among families with children is widening… children from systemically marginalized groups experience significantly disproportionately high poverty rates
Tags: jurisdiction, multiculturalism, poverty, youth
Posted in Social Security Debates | No Comments »
Key takeaways: What is the state of welfare in Canada?
Monday, October 28th, 2024
… overall, adequacy is still a problem. And there are two components…: the actual amount of the benefit, federal and provincial components, and indexation… it’s terrific that more jurisdictions have indexed their benefits or part of their benefits, but this should be a given without any question… maybe it’s time for an income supplement for lower-income families… And third, if there is any increase in any federal benefits, we have to make sure that there is no clawback.
Tags: jurisdiction, participation, poverty, standard of living
Posted in Social Security Debates | No Comments »
There are Better Ways to Spend $3 Billion on Seniors than Boosting OAS
Monday, October 7th, 2024
If $3 billion per year were spent on seniors, where would it be best spent: Income security, supports, services or residential and nursing care? And if income security turns out to be the answer to that question, then why via OAS, which is paid to 7 million Canadian seniors? Should it not instead be the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS), which is targeted towards to Canada’s 2.2 million lowest income seniors almost all of whom really do struggle to make ends meet?
Tags: budget, economy, poverty, Seniors
Posted in Social Security Policy Context | No Comments »
Fully Indexing Ontario Social Assistance is Long Overdue
Monday, October 7th, 2024
October 1 was the six-year anniversary of the last inflation adjustment for Ontario’s social assistance payments. Their real value has steadily eroded ever since, made worse by inflation’s recent return… The lack of indexation of Ontario social assistance benefit levels has eroded the value of these benefits significantly and contributed to rising homelessness, hunger, and demand for social and health services. It is time to introduce a more economically efficient and fairer way of adjusting these benefits on a regular basis.
Tags: budget, featured, ideology, jurisdiction, poverty
Posted in Social Security Policy Context | No Comments »
Doug Ford’s inaction has left Ontario’s most vulnerable without a fighting chance
Monday, September 30th, 2024
The province… has ignored Ontario Works, while continuing to index many other things such as child benefits, income taxes and the minimum wage, for example. It also increased Ontario Disability Support Program amounts in 2022 and commenced indexing in 2023. The Guaranteed Annual Income System – a program aimed at low-income seniors – started indexing in 2023… Yet here we are with OW recipients suffering under a rising cost of living while the government watches from a distance.
Tags: featured, ideology, jurisdiction, participation, poverty
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Six key takeaways from Welfare in Canada, 2023
Monday, September 16th, 2024
Total welfare incomes were deeply inadequate across Canada in 2023. Increases to social assistance benefits between 2018 and 2023 were uneven across jurisdictions. Very few jurisdictions have indexed benefits and tax credits to inflation as of 2023… Provinces and territories should invest in higher social assistance benefits and tax-delivered income supports. Governments at all levels should index all social assistance benefits and tax-delivered benefits or credits to inflation where they don’t already do so.
Tags: budget, disabilities, featured, jurisdiction, poverty, standard of living
Posted in Social Security Policy Context | No Comments »
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