Resources for people who are not self-sufficient caught in the throat of inflation

Inflation has been one of the hot topics in the economic news for the past year. Faced with this rise in the cost of living, resources that house people who are not self-sufficient are no longer able to make ends meet.

Family-type resources (FTRs) are living environments that accommodate up to nine people living with a disability, an intellectual deficiency or a mental disorder, in particular.

These resources, which are private, are obliged to provide a safe and healthy environment as well as to meet their basic needs for food and hygiene.

To care for their residents, RTFs receive a daily compensation of $28.97 per person. This amount includes the $0.28 per person per day adjustment they received last year.

However, according to Statistics Canada data, the consumer price index has been forecast to grow by 3.8 per cent in 2021 and 6.7 per cent in 2022. The upward trend also continued in 2023, with growth of 6.2 per cent in January and 5.6 per cent in February.

According to Regroupement des ressources résidentielles adultes du Québec (RESSAQ) president Hugo Légaré, foster homes are being forced to pay out of their own pockets to feed users, buy gas and purchase personal hygiene products.

He fears that this financial pressure will push many of his members to abandon their mission, which would have a significant impact on users who would have to be relocated by the health network.

The RESSAQ has received the support of Quebec Solidaire MNA Christine Labrie in its demand. The Sherbrooke MNA said she was very concerned about the financial precariousness of these families who take in people who are not autonomous.

She added that she felt it was urgent to act to find solutions to help them.

The funding paid to RTFs is fixed by an agreement signed between their associations and the government. The same principle applies to intermediate resources (IR), which receive a daily compensation of $38.80.

The RESSAQ is therefore asking the Ministry of Health and Social Services to close the $9.83 gap, at the very least.

Labrie sponsored a petition that has garnered 819 signatures and was submitted to the national assembly to request financial assistance from the Quebec government, but the health and social services commission refused to consider it.

However, Social Services Minister Lionel Carmant has agreed to meet with the RESSAQ in the coming weeks.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on April 9, 2023.