Following the release of these two major white papers last May, the BCCPA conducted a public consultation survey focused on obtaining feedback regarding the options outlined in them. In this update, we look at questions around the financing of care.
In BCCPA’s Public Seniors Survey, several of the questions revolved around the funding and financing of care in B.C. Asked about their perception of how care operators were funded by the B.C. government, the majority (66%) said they think that operators are receiving too little funding.
The survey asked if funding should be adjusted for inflation or factor in the level of resident’s acuity, and asked their perceptions of how well (or poorly) care homes are funded. Respondents were also asked if residential care homes should be exempt from local property taxes as they are in the province of Alberta.
There were a pair of questions focused on individual choices around funding care: 1) on the support for a long term care insurance program that will allow people to save for their care later in life, and 2) the level of interest in care credits – a voucher system whereby users can have more choice in how they will apply their care subsidy. Though the responses were not definitive, there was a strong interest in these options.
Respondents were asked their opinions on the role of federal government funding in care, with specific reference to the commitment by the Federal Liberals to provide up to $3 billion directed at seniors care.
Respondents, who were allowed to identify up to three areas, indicated that their top priorities were:
- Increasing staffing levels for care (61%);
- Improving access to home care (60%); and
- Reducing the cost of prescription medications (45%).
Survey participants were asked to indicate their opinion on the idea of an Age-Adjusted Canada Health Transfer (CHT), where provinces with higher proportions of seniors receive additional funding on a per person basis. This concept received moderate support, with just over 70% of respondents indicating support for this policy option. Fifteen per cent of survey respondents indicated that they were neutral on this issue, while 14% indicated that they disagreed.
For news coverage on this part of the Seniors Survey report, follow this link.
To download a copy of the full report, click here.
