Disability advocates warn eligibility for federal dental-care plan may be cumbersome
The federal government's new dental insurance plan has yet to be introduced, but advocates are warning the eligibility criteria for people with disabilities could be cumbersome and may not capture everyone who should have access to the program.
The details of the insurance plan are expected to be announced this fall, with a goal to eventually provide dental benefits to qualifying kids under the age of 18, seniors and people with disabilities.
The Liberals promised in their supply-and-confidence agreement with the NDP that dental coverage will ultimately be offered to all people with a household income under $90,000 per year by the end of 2024.
The government hasn't said how people will be required to prove that they're disabled in order to qualify for the insurance plan.
But it typically relies on the list of people who access the disability tax credit to determine who should receive other disability-related programs, said Disability Without Poverty national director Rabia Khedr.
The list of people who access the tax credit "is not the best list for them to work from," because it doesn't always capture the people with disabilities who could benefit most from the dental program, she said in an interview Friday.
"It's incumbent on people filing their taxes," she explained, which many people with especially low incomes don't do.
Even those who file their taxes may not qualify or even bother to apply for the tax credit because they don't have the resources.
"You have to fill get medical forms filled out. Doctors may even charge a fee to do those forms," she said.
"Many, many people with different types of disabilities don't qualify. If their disabilities are episodic, if their disabilities are temporary, it's not an easy thing to qualify for."
A 2018 study published by the University of Calgary found only 40 per cent of working-age adults with qualifying disabilities were actually able to access the credit.
The authors, Stephanie Dunn and Jennifer Zwicker, found there were several barriers for people with disabilities to apply, including the complexity of the application process and the fact that for some, the high application costs outweigh the benefits.
Health Minister Mark Holland wouldn't shed any light on whether the government is considering other options to determine eligibility for the program, but said he would like it to be as frictionless as possible.
"Where something is medically necessary for somebody's oral health, we want to make sure that regardless of your circumstance -- certainly if somebody has additional issues, is facing a disability -- that there's flexibility within the system to make sure that people get the care that they need," Holland said in an interview.
NDP health critic Don Davies said that ideally, anyone who falls under the income threshold and receives provincial disability support would qualify, but it would be difficult to create a system to allow that in just one year.
"We have been advocating for the broader definition but we have to be alive to the practical realities of things," Davies said in an interview.
Since everyone who meets the income requirements would qualify for the dental plan by the end of next year, the problem will be short-lived, Davies said.
"It's a policy question that has a shelf life and implication of maximum 12 months," he said.
In that case, Khedr said the government should fast-track eligibility to make the dental coverage as accessible as possible.
"This can be life saving for people. It's about their quality of life. It's about their dignity."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 6, 2023.
IN DEPTH
Jagmeet Singh pulls NDP out of deal with Trudeau Liberals, takes aim at Poilievre Conservatives
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has pulled his party out of the supply-and-confidence agreement that had been helping keep Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's minority Liberals in power.
'Not the result we wanted': Trudeau responds after surprise Conservative byelection win in Liberal stronghold
Conservative candidate Don Stewart winning the closely-watched Toronto-St. Paul's federal byelection, and delivering a stunning upset to Justin Trudeau's candidate Leslie Church in the long-time Liberal riding, has sent political shockwaves through both parties.
'We will go with the majority': Liberals slammed by opposition over proposal to delay next election
The federal Liberal government learned Friday it might have to retreat on a proposal within its electoral reform legislation to delay the next vote by one week, after all opposition parties came out to say they can't support it.
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
A year into the Israel-Hamas war, students say a chill on free speech has reached college classrooms
As a junior at George Washington University, Ty Lindia meets new students every day. But with the shadow of the Israel-Hamas war hanging over the Washington, D.C., campus, where everyone has a political opinion, each new encounter is fraught.
Hurricane Milton is growing stronger as it blows toward Florida's Tampa Bay region
People across Florida were given notice Sunday that Hurricane Milton is intensifying rapidly and will likely be a major hurricane before slamming midweek into the storm-ravaged Gulf Coast.
The cooking method you need to learn to get excited about vegetables this fall, expert says
'Eat more vegetables,' doctors and dietitians say over and over. But for many people, it’s hard to do, because they aren’t excited about veggies or just don’t like them.
Weeneebayko Area Health Authority and the Government of Ontario have awarded a $1.8 billion fixed-price contract to design, build and finance a new Far North hospital.
Madonna's brother, Christopher Ciccone, dead at 63
Christopher Ciccone, a multihyphenate artist, dancer, designer and younger brother of Madonna, has died. He was 63.
Trudeau heads to ASEAN summit and Ukraine defence meetings this week
Justin Trudeau will travel to Laos later this week for the ASEAN summit, marking what his office says will be the first official visit of a Canadian prime minister to the Southeast Asian country.
A gargantuan gourd – affectionately named ‘Orangina’ by the urban gardeners who grew it in the front yard of their Vancouver home – earned the massive honour of being named B.C.’s heaviest giant pumpkin Saturday.
Donald Glover cancels Childish Gambino tour dates after recent surgery
Donald Glover has cancelled the remaining dates of Childish Gambino’s North American and European tour.
Oct. 7 commemoration events being held across Canada
Hundreds of people are gathering today in cities across Canada to remember the victims of Hamas's Oct. 7 attack on Israel and the hostages that have still not yet made it home.
Local Spotlight
Weeneebayko Area Health Authority and the Government of Ontario have awarded a $1.8 billion fixed-price contract to design, build and finance a new Far North hospital.
Bubi’s Awesome Eats, located on University Ave West took to social media to announce the closure on Friday.
Some Manitobans are cleaning up Sunday morning, after intense winds barreled through southern parts of the province Saturday.
Avry Wortman, 13, scored two touchdowns on Sunday during her team's win in the under 14 Greater Moncton Football Association.
A gargantuan gourd – affectionately named ‘Orangina’ by the urban gardeners who grew it in the front yard of their Vancouver home – earned the massive honour of being named B.C.’s heaviest giant pumpkin Saturday.
Chantal Kreviazuk is set to return to Winnipeg to mark a major milestone in her illustrious musical career.
From the beaches of Cannes to the bustling streets of New York City, a new film by a trio of Manitoba directors has toured the international film festival circuit to much pomp and circumstance.
A husband and wife have been on the road trip of a lifetime and have decided to stop in Saskatchewan for the winter.
The grave of a previously unknown Canadian soldier has been identified as a man from Hayfield, Man. who fought in the First World War.