AISH recipients panicked over looming provincial deadline: health providers

CBC

6 days ago

Health providers say people who receive Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped (AISH) are calling them in a panic over a letter from the province that threatens to cut their benefits if they don't meet a September deadline.
The providers tasked with filling out the forms for the Disability Tax Credit (DTC) and Canada Disability Benefits (CDB) say they are overwhelmed by the calls and confusion over the deadline set by the province.
A copy of the letter obtained by CBC News states that AISH clients are "required to access all sources of income they may be eligible for, including federal programs."
The letter tells clients to update their local AISH office about the status of their DTC and CDB applications prior to Sept. 5, 2025.
"Clients who have not communicated the status of their CDB application to their AISH office prior to September 5, 2025, may see an equivalent amount to the CDB benefit, $200, deducted from their monthly AISH benefits, beginning with the October 2025 period of assistance," reads the letter.
The province plans to keep AISH payments at the same amount but take back the $200 monthly amount for the federal benefit. The Alberta government has said it has the highest payments in Canada and exceeds the minimum set by the federal government.
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AISH recipients, who receive $1,901 a month from the province, say they are being forced to pay upfront for the medical evaluations in order to apply for the benefits.
Ivy Hays, from Coronation, has received AISH benefits for nearly 20 years due to a number of permanent health issues that resulted from a massive heart attack in her late 30s.
Hays said her physician is charging $400 to fill out the medical form for the DTC application. She said she asked to pay the clinic in instalments but the office insisted she had to pay the entire cost upfront.
"My heart hit the floor," Hays said. "I have no living family. I have no way to come up with that $400."
Her AISH caseworker arranged for a loan that she could pay back over a series of months, but Hays said she has learned the form will still take at least two months for the physician to fill out, taking her past the Sept. 5 deadline.
At an unrelated news conference on Thursday, Assisted Living and Social Services Minister Jason Nixon said his government isn't expecting AISH recipients to complete the federal application process by September 5.
Nixon said they are required to check in with their caseworker by that date and update them on where they're at with their application.
"We will not be cutting off AISH benefits in September if people are still working through their process with the federal government," he said.
'Very sad'
Patty Wilson, a nurse practitioner in Calgary, said her clinic is getting deluged with calls from patients with disabilities worried they will miss the September deadline. Others are concerned they received the letter because they did something wrong.
"I'm sad, very sad, for my patients, as well, that this is another hurdle that they have to jump through, another added stressor they have to go through," Wilson said in an interview.
Wilson estimates each form takes her about two to three hours to fill out. There are so many people in the queue, Wilson said she'd be lucky to get all them done by September 2026 She already has a one-year wait list for people needing medical forms to get AISH.
Dr. Ginetta Silvalaggio, a family physician in Edmonton, said the forms have contributed to her working more hours. While she is managing to keep up at the moment, she worries what will happen by the end of August as the deadline creeps closer.
Silvalaggio said she can't understand why the province is taking this action when it ended the last fiscal year with an $8.3 billion surplus.
"Why target the disabled community in particular in the name of saving a buck?" she asked. "There's a lot of distress because the time frames are so tight."
Research
A new brief from the Disability Policy Research Program at the University of Calgary's School of Public Policy compiled reaction to the changes from 241 AISH recipients who were allowed to stay anonymous so they could speak freely.
If they could keep the Canada Disability Benefit, respondents said they would use that $200 to buy more and healthier groceries, pay for prescriptions not covered by health benefits, and cover rent increases in market housing.
Others spoke about the ability to set aside $5 or $10 a month for a small emergency fund or even have the ability to leave their apartment.
"I'm housebound because transportation is too expensive," a respondent from Edmonton wrote. "I feel trapped and being able to get out once in a while would be life-changing."
Another respondent said the extra money would allow them to live with more independence and dignity
"For someone relying on AISH, $200 isn't just money; it represents hope, stability, and a chance to live with real choices."
Senior research associate Brittany Finley was involved in the report, which was an initiative of the Disability Policy Research Program and eight organizations across the province, including Inclusion Alberta, Disability Action Hall, Alberta Ability Network and Inclusion Grande Prairie.
Finley said the responses showed that people on AISH believe the government is leaving them behind.
"You don't feel that you're being valued as a citizen in the province where you were born and where you live," she said. "And I think that just makes people feel like they've lost hope."