| Our seniors built Ontario. We owe them our gratitude and to make this province the best possible place to age with dignity. That’s not what Ontario has been under the Ford Conservatives. Instead, everyday costs continue to rise while seniors try to make do on fixed incomes. Their desire to age in homes that contain a lifetime of good memories is being threatened by a lack of affordable and available home care. And seniors who need around-the-clock support have instead endured shocking mistreatment and neglect in long-term care.
We’ll refocus seniors’ care on what matters most, helping to lower costs, increase care and go after those looking to make a fortune off the most vulnerable. We’ll make it easier to stay in your own home by guaranteeing home care. And in the event, you need more support, we’re going to build long-term care homes that feel like homes, rather than warehouses. Our Ontario Liberal plan treats seniors with the dignity and care they deserve. |
Supporting Seniors to Age at Home✅ Help 400,000 more seniors get home care ✅ End for-profit long-term care and protect seniors ✅ Stop the Conservatives from handing billions to corporations that warehouse seniors |
Empower seniors to live independently
Ontario Liberals will:
- Help seniors pay for home repairs and assistive tools like wheelchairs, hearing aids, ramps and lifts
- Give more money to caregivers that support their loved ones
Older adults want to live as long as possible in their own homes close to friends, neighbours and family. It’s past time that we listen to seniors and respect their choices. We’ll expand and make permanent the Seniors’ Home Safety Tax Credit to make living at home safer and more accessible – as well as cover more costs for assistive devices, such as wheelchairs, hearing aids and lifts. For people who take care of loved ones, we’ll make the Ontario Caregiver Tax Credit refundable, tax-free and paid out throughout the year and enhance access to support programs and tools.
Guarantee home care for everyone who needs it
Ontario Liberals will:
- Help 400,000 more seniors get home care by 2026
- Increase funding for home care by 10% annually prioritizing non-profit care
- Fund assisted living alternatives and “hub and spoke” community care
- Create a dementia care network
- Fully fund the clinical costs for hospices
We’ll guarantee that any senior who needs care in their own home gets it by increasing the annual budget for home and community care by over $2 billion through 10% annual increases year with a focus on front-line non-profit care, resulting in 400,000 more seniors able to get not-for-profit home care by 2026.
We’ll also fund 15,000 new assisted living homes – including small, accessible and community-based residential services – as well as “hub and spoke” care that provides a comprehensive continuum of care.
We’ll create a dementia care network by investing in existing memory clinics and expanding the number of clinics. This kind of access to care should continue right up until the very end of life, so we’ll support more palliative care by fully funding the clinical costs for hospices. Finally, we’ll merge the government’s home care functions into one ministry focused on seniors. (cost: approx. $100 million)
End for-profit long-term care and protect seniors
Ontario Liberals will:
- End for-profit long-term care as quickly as possible with a target of 2028
- Place audits, inspections and zero-tolerance sanctions on long-term care homes that endanger residents or misdirect funds
- Repeal rules that protect long-term care companies from legal liability
People were rightly horrified and disgusted when the media revealed living conditions at Ontario’s private long-term care homes during the pandemic – with our parents, mentors and friends forced to endure mistreatment and neglect for “cost savings.” Seniors in private long-term care homes were more likely to die from COVID than those in non-profit or public homes. Conditions were so poor that the Canadian Army had to intervene.
We can’t let this keep happening, so we’ll end for-profit long-term care as quickly as possible with a target of 2028 by no longer renewing licenses for for-profit long-term care homes, as well as by negotiating and financing the transfer of existing homes to not-for-profit entities and municipalities (net interest cost: $150 million annually).
We’ll also improve conditions for seniors in long-term care homes, enhancing inspections to enforce – with zero-tolerance sanctions – when homes endanger residents or don’t meet new standards. We’ll verify through audits that government funding for long-term care homes is being spent on resident care and services and not going into the pockets of corporate directors and shareholders. We’ll prevent homes from admitting new residents when they’re not appropriately staffed and repeal the Ford Conservatives’ rules that protect long-term care companies from legal liability for harming residents. We’ll also increase training, awareness and enforcement mechanisms to eliminate elder abuse in long-term care and beyond
Create not-for-profit long-term care homes that feel like homes
Ontario Liberals will:
- Build and redevelop 58,000 new non-profit long-term care spaces
- Ensure seniors in long-term care homes receive at least four hours of direct care every day
To make sure closing for-profit homes doesn’t lead to longer wait times for seniors, we’ll build 30,000 new long-term care spaces by 2028 and redevelop 28,000 existing spaces to modern standards. We’ll do this by providing capital, operating and governance support to non-profit groups that want to build long-term care homes, with an emphasis on building smaller homes that reflect their communities, rather than institutional warehouses. We’ll give funds to non-profit long-term care homes to provide at least an average of four hours of direct care per day, as well as provide pharmacy services, high-speed wi-fi, air conditioning and other standards of excellent care.