This article was written by Evelyn Huntjens.  It originally appeared in the edition of DABC’s Transition magazine, Canada Disability Benefit: What protection does it actually offer? (Fall/Winter 2024).

Read the full edition in PDF format here and in text-only format here.

If you’re interested in contributing to Transition as an individual or an organization, please email transition@dabc.ca.

The upcoming Canada Disability Benefit (CDB) has brought both hope and concern for individuals and their families who may qualify. Indigenous people, especially those with disabilities, routinely find many barriers in accessing the supports they need. The CDB could help solve some of these issues, but only if it recognizes and addresses the complex problems Indigenous people face.

Barriers in the DTC

One of the biggest barriers Indigenous people and communities face is the Disability Tax Credit (DTC) for which people must qualify to access the CDB. The DTC can be very inaccessible, due to confusing and challenging barriers that keep eligible people from accessing it.

In many Indigenous communities, and in rural and northern areas, there can be delays in accessing medical appointments. If you don’t have a doctor, getting the DTC becomes almost impossible which delays or blocks access to this benefit, and therefore the CDB.

Because many Indigenous people with disability live in poverty, tax credits like the DTC don’t help. The DTC offers a reduction in income taxes, but not a refund. It is only valuable because of its link to other benefits such as the Registered Disability Savings Plan. But, the potential financial benefits of the RDSP are years away, as it can only be accessed without penalty after age 60.

All of these factors make applying for the DTC either too difficult or a low priority. This is even though 55% of people with severe and very severe disabilities are potentially eligible for the DTC. Given the trends in statistics, the percentage of Indigenous peoples who are not accessing the DTC is likely higher. Additional resources are needed to support access to the DTC and therefore to the CDB.

On top of these issues, approval for the DTC doesn’t guarantee re-approval. Even if you have a lifelong condition, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) requires you to reapply every 3-5 years. This is a huge barrier, especially for those with “invisible disabilities” that are harder to “prove,” but significantly impact daily life.

Ableism and racism in our healthcare system is rampant for Indigenous people with these disabilities. People have been intimidated and shamed, and told they don’t qualify. It is not the healthcare practitioner’s role to approve the DTC, but they are often the gatekeepers to access.

Gaps in the CDB Regulations

The CDB has the potential to offer direct financial support to people with disabilities, but there are many gaps in the rules that need to be fixed. There’s a risk that, without specific steps to include Indigenous communities, the CDB could create the same barriers as the DTC.

The CDB needs to take into account that Indigenous people living with disability in rural or remote communities often require direct supports to access benefits. The application process for the CDB should be simple, so people who don’t have reliable healthcare can still navigate the application process and be approved. And, people who receive disability income assistance should have an automatic approval process for the CDB.

Another hurdle is the doctor’s fee for completing the DTC. An individual or family living on disability income assistance cannot be out of pocket as much as $250 in a month and still put food on the table. Many Indigenous communities’ programs and services do not provide resources to cover this application cost or travel to have the form completed. This will perpetuate poverty for those who live with disability, whether they qualify or not.

It seems contradictory to make commitments to inclusive communities and full participation for all citizens and then create a new program with processes that have substantial barriers.

Without addressing these issues, Indigenous people with disabilities could be left out again.

Empowering Indigenous People with Disabilities

One important step in developing a truly inclusive process is to ensure Indigenous people are involved in making decisions about accessing the CDB in their communities. Community-based navigation programs should also be available to support Indigenous people with disabilities.

Allyship with Indigenous people with disabilities should go beyond government policies.

There should be public campaigns to raise awareness about the unique challenges faced by Indigenous people with disabilities. And, Indigenous people with disability should also have leadership roles to build stronger networks of support.

The Canada Disability Benefit has the potential to provide much-needed support, but it’s crucial that the federal government addresses the current gaps. Then, the CDB can become a tool that truly empowers and supports Indigenous people with disabilities.

Learn more at BC Aboriginal Network on Disability Society and DAWN Canada.

Evelyn Huntjens joins DAWN Canada as the Director of Indigenous Initiatives to lead the organization in amplifying the voices of Indigenous women, girls and gender-diverse people living with disabilities. Evelyn resides on Vancouver Island, BC within the ancestral territory of the Quw’utsun People and is a member of the Xeni Gwet’in First Nation.

This article was written by Michael J. Prince.  It originally appeared in the edition of DABC’s Transition magazine, Canada Disability Benefit: What protection does it actually offer? (Fall/Winter 2024).

Read the full edition in PDF format here and in text-only format here.

If you’re interested in contributing to Transition as an individual or an organization, please email transition@dabc.ca.

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A few days after the April 2024 federal government budget outlined key details about the Canada Disability Benefit (CDB), I contacted the Honourable Kamal Khera, Minister of Diversity, Inclusion and Persons with Disabilities, and gave formal notice of my resignation from the Minister’s Disability Advisory Group effective immediately.

The Trudeau government’s decisions around the Canada Disability Benefit announced in the federal budget triggered my resignation.

The budget fails to heed the long-declared recommendations by national disability organizations and other groups for a properly-funded benefit, one that recognizes the additional costs of living for people with disabilities.

The benefit, although depicted as a key pillar in the government’s plan to provide direct support to those who need it most, does not adequately address the serious needs of more than one million adults living with disabilities across the country, many of whom live in poverty.

I initially thought the benefit amount of $200 was a misprint. The benefit is too low and too few people in need are covered. It is complicated to access, lacks collaboration, and waits too long to meaningfully reduce poverty.

In 2020, the federal government described the CDB as modeled after the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) for low-income seniors aged sixty-five and older.

In 2024, the maximum benefit amount of the GIS is $12,785 annually. For the CDB, the proposed maximum benefit amount is $2,400 per year for low-income people with disabilities between the ages of 18 and 64. The proposed maximum annual payment for the CDB equates to about two months of the support for low-income seniors.

A Retreat from Real Poverty Reduction

The government estimates that more than 600,000 low-income people with disabilities may qualify for the CDB. However, Employment and Social Development Canada later revealed the CDB might, at most, lift only 25,000 recipients out of financial poverty.

These numbers for coverage and poverty reduction fall well short of the estimated 1.2 million people with disabilities across Canada living in poverty. In contrast to previous statements about the intended effects of the CDB, it simply may not bring significant poverty-reduction effects.

So Much for “Nothing About Us, Without Us”

The budget included a statement that, in the spirit of “nothing about us without us”, the government would provide meaningful opportunities for people living with disability to collaborate.

However, not on everything. Whatever the eventual design of the program, the budget adds the fundamental constraint that “the design will need to fit the investment proposed in Budget 2024.”

This fiscal condition, set down by the Minister of Finance, means that the issues of benefit adequacy, effectiveness as a poverty-reduction policy and the coverage of the program are not truly up for discussion.

In the words of this budget, the federal government “aspires to see” that, one day, the combined amount of federal and provincial or territorial income supports for people with disabilities grow to the level of Old Age Security and the GIS to tackle disability poverty.

Significant Investments are Required

The history of social policy in Canada teaches us that major reform in income support often comes from federal leadership in investments and program reform. It has long been apparent that not all provinces and none of the territories have the financial capacity to tackle disability poverty in a fundamental and sustainable way.

Out of sync with public opinion and community needs, this budget announcement fails to take strong federal responsibility for income security for working-age adults with disabilities who are working hard to join the middle class.

I concluded my voice was no longer making a difference on this advisory group and that by remaining, people would assume I supported this benefit design. So I resigned.

However, I continue to work with self-advocates and community allies in other ways and places.

Michael J. Prince is Lansdowne Professor of Social Policy at the University of Victoria. From 2018 to 2024, he was Board Chair of Community Living BC. He was also a member of the federal Ministerial Disability Advisory Group from April 2020 to April 2024.

In June, the federal government published their proposed regulation for the Canada Disability Benefit (CDB). The CDB will likely provide a maximum of $2,400 per year–$200 per month–to eligible Canadians with disabilities. Eligibility will also be limited to people who qualify for the Disability Tax Credit. Applications to the CDB are slated to open in Spring 2025.

Consultations on the proposed regulation are currently underway. DABC has been working on our in-depth review of the proposed regulation, which we hope to share with our networks very soon. This review will also be sent to the federal government as part of the consultation process.

 In addition to this advocacy work, we are also planning to discuss the topic of the Canada Disability Benefit in our next issue of the Transition magazine, and we want to hear from you!

What do you want to tell government to consider in their future deliberations around the CDB process or the benefit amount? Please send your short response of up to three sentences to transition@dabc.ca by September 12th for our upcoming edition on the CDB. We can publish your comments anonymously or with your name(s),  whichever you choose.