Currently, the Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP) offers refugee claimants, protected persons, resettled refugees, victims of human trafficking, victims of family violence, detainees and others some health coverage while they await status or eligibility for other forms of coverage, including provincial or territorial health insurance. Learn more about eligibility and what IFHP covers at Canada.ca.

The Federal government recently announced that effective May 1st, 2026, people covered by IFHP will be required to pay a $4 co-payment for prescription medications and a 30% co-payment for supplemental health services, including mental health care, dental and vision services, rehabilitation, and essential medical supplies.

The Canadian Medical Association (CMA) has written a letter to the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship expressing concerns about these new co-payments. DABC strongly supports this letter and share CMA’s concerns.

We would like to add and emphasize the following:

• Many refugees or asylum seekers are people with disabilities who enter the country after fleeing from war or persecution and may face high essential healthcare or mental health care costs.
• At DABC and our national affiliate organization DAC, we support many individuals with disabilities who struggle to afford healthcare when they have several other urgent needs.
• If people cannot afford their healthcare, they are more likely to delay accessing necessary healthcare until they have no other choice. This further worsens health outcomes for refugees and places an unfair administrative burden on healthcare workers.

We have seen how policy adjustments that negatively affect people with disabilities can cause generational impacts, deepen disability poverty, and create greater societal inequities. We echo CMA in urging the government to reconsider these changes and to work collaboratively with those impacted by any changes to IFHP, including patients and healthcare providers.

The Association of Vancouver Island and Coastal Communities (AVICC)‘s 2026 AGM and Convention takes place from April 24th-April 26th, and representatives from DABC’s Accessible Organizations Project will be in attendance.

AVICC represents local governments on Vancouver Island, qathet, the Sunshine Coast, Central Coast and North Coast.

In an open letter, DABC and three other organizations have asked delegates of the AGM and Convention to support AVICC resolution R19 Wheelchairs and Mobility Scooters in Bike-and-Roll Mobility Lanes and Routes.

Download the open letter or read the text below.

April 21, 2026

Dear Association of Vancouver Island and Coastal Communities (AVICC) Delegates:

Re: Please support AVICC resolution R19 Wheelchairs and Mobility Scooters in Bike-and-Roll Mobility Lanes and Routes

BC’s Motor Vehicle legislation presently inhibits the ability of seniors and people with disabilities to be active, independent, and engaged and creates a legal grey area regarding the use of wheelchairs and 3 & 4 wheel mobility scooters on bike lanes and routes.

We urge you to speak and vote in favor of the motion advanced by the City of Victoria that: “the UBCM advocate that provincial Motor Vehicle legislation and regulations be updated to allow the use of wheelchairs and 3&4 wheel mobility scooters on bike lanes and traffic calmed bike routes across BC.” This update would add choice for wheelchair and mobility scooter users, their right to use sidewalks and other pedestrian facilities would be maintained.

Electric drive technology has advanced in recent years, and many people in BC already use wheelchairs and (3 & 4 wheel) mobility scooters that can travel faster than is safe on even wide and well-maintained sidewalks. Mobility scooters and wheelchairs with top speeds of 15 km/hr to 25 km/hr (the legislated maximum) are now commonly available.

Some people with disabilities already use mobility scooters on the networks of bike and roll routes that municipalities have created. And BC’s human rights legislation requires that public infrastructure be accessible to people with disabilities. However, travel training programs need legislative certainty to be able to teach how to safely use this convenient, sustainable, and relatively affordable form of transportation.

Wheelchairs and 3 & 4 wheel mobility scooters have been used on bike and roll routes legally and safely for decades in other jurisdictions, including the state of Oregon. Quebec’s regulations allowing wheelchairs and mobility scooters on bike and roll routes and low-speed streets are already in place and can provide a potential model for BC to follow.

Please support this important advocacy motion. In addition, please consider proposing that your municipality and/or regional district write directly to Mike Farnworth, Minister of Transportation and Transit, advocating for this important change.

Council of Senior Citizens Organizations of BC (COSCO), Disability Alliance BC, HUB Cycling, and BC Cycling Coalition

coscobc.org    disabilityalliancebc.org    bikehub.ca    bccycling.ca

PRESS RELEASE AND MEDIA ADVISORY
-For Immediate Release-

No Response from Federal Housing Minister as Rally Planned to Save Accessible Housing Program

Vancouver, B.C. – April 21, 2026 — Disability Alliance BC (DABC) and the Individualized Funding Resource Centre (IFRC) say they have yet to receive a response from Federal Housing Minister Gregor Robertson following the loss of funding for the Right Fit Program, Canada’s only program matching wheelchair users with accessible housing.

Operated by Disability Alliance BC in partnership with the Individualized Funding Resource Centre, the program lost its federal Reaching Home funding on April 1 and is now at risk of shutting down.

“This is a time-sensitive crisis, and we are still waiting for a response,” said Helaine Boyd, Executive Director of Disability Alliance BC. “Without action, hundreds of people in Metro Vancouver will lose access to a proven pathway out of homelessness.”

The Right Fit Program is the only initiative of its kind in Canada and has:

• Housed 371 people (including family members)
• Achieved 83% improved housing accessibility and 95% client satisfaction
• Supported many clients who were homeless or at imminent risk of homelessness

There are currently 213 people on the Right Fit Program’s waitlist, many facing eviction, unsafe housing, or homelessness.

Beyond housing, DABC warns that the loss of the program will increase pressure on B.C.’s already strained long-term care system. In the absence of accessible housing, some younger adults with disabilities are placed into long-term care, not because it is appropriate, but because no other option exists. “Without programs like the Right Fit, the system defaults to institutional solutions, at a higher cost and with worse outcomes for individuals,” Boyd said.

DABC and IFRC are calling on the federal government to restore funding immediately.

Watch the press conference from April 2, 2026: https://youtu.be/Fiiv9D0atzE

MEDIA ADVISORY: RALLY TO SAVE THE RIGHT FIT PROGRAM

Organized by Disability Alliance BC (DABC) and the Individualized Funding Resource Centre (IFRC)

What: Rally calling for urgent federal action to save the Right Fit Program

When: Wednesday, April 22, 2026 at 2:00 PM PT

Where:
Minister Gregor Robertson’s Constituency Office
#360 – 3150 E 54th Ave, Vancouver, BC

Why:
DABC has received no response from Housing Minister Gregor Robertson as a critical housing program faces shutdown, putting wheelchair users at risk of homelessness and institutionalization.

Media Contact:
Helaine Boyd, Executive Director, Disability Alliance BC

Email: helaine@dabc.ca | phone: 236-598-0463

Download the press release here.

# # #