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The program that helps guarantee an income to some of the most vulnerable people in Saskatchewan is poised to get a major overhaul.
Social Services Minister Terry Jenson announced changes to the Saskatchewan Assured Income for Disability (SAID) program on Thursday, saying they’re meant to simplify and streamline a program that’s become too complicated.
“It basically realigns everything; it modernizes everything. It simplifies the program, so it’s easier for clients to understand, it’s easier for the CBOs to understand, easier even for some of our ministry staff to understand,” Jenson said.
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These changes are in addition to changes made to the program in February, which affected a small number of SAID clients. Jenson said these latest moves are a lot more detailed and complex in terms of the changes being made to the system.
More individual benefits are being rolled into the Living Income Benefit – the base amount given to SAID clients.
Benefits for laundry, telephone and disability had been individual amounts which clients had to qualify for, but those amounts will now be rolled into the Living Income Benefit, raising the basic rates by $80 to $100 each month.
As well, benefits for school expenses and fees will be changed from an annual lump sum to a monthly payment, spreading the money out for expenses that can come up through the year.
Some benefits are being discontinued, like the Monthly Meal Allowance – which was given to clients without access to cooking facilities – or the Household Task Benefit, which was only being used by a small number of clients. The ministry said clients who were using these benefits will either be transitioned to others or the benefit amounts they were receiving will be grandfathered in.
Under the program changes, the number of tiers of family benefits and the number of tiers for the different regions of the province will be reduced and simplified. The ministry said this will result in some people’s benefits increasing and will better reflect the needs of clients and reduce disparities between the categories.
In addition, all SAID clients will be transitioned to the ministry, providing the actual cost of their utilities instead of a flat rate – the ministry reported less than three per cent of clients on the program had opted for the flat-rate option.
Jenson insisted no current clients will see a reduction in their benefits because of these changes, and that 40 per cent of clients will see an average increase of $46 per month.
The ministry will also implement a Transitional Provision Benefit, which will be provided to make clients whole if the new benefit levels are lower than the ones they’re on. The ministry said about 20 per cent of clients are expected to receive this benefit.
However, when asked whether new clients who come onto the program after Sept. 1 could see lower benefits than they would have on the current program, Jenson couldn’t give a straight yes or no answer.
The Assistant Deputy Minister of Income Assistance Programs, Julene Restall, said some current clients have higher benefits because they’ve been grandfathered in on benefits that don’t exist anymore, and the program is too individualized to have a one-to-one comparison.
Jenson pointed out there are more than 60 individualized benefits SAID clients can apply for – on top of the base benefit – to meet their needs.
The minister said government is going to reach out to clients to make sure they understand their benefits and the changes. Clients can also contact their case workers or call a new phone line as of Friday to provide information about the changes at 1-800-667-7155.
Sask. NDP Rural and Remote Health Critic Jared Clarke.
The Saskatchewan NDP appeared skeptical of the government’s changes.
Jared Clarke, critic for rural and remote health, told reporters on Thursday that SAID clients are living in poverty conditions and any increase to their benefits is good, but just $46 more each month that the announced changes work out to for some isn’t enough.
“Anyone who knows someone living with a disability, I think they deserve better than what they’re getting in general, and a $46 increase today – while is a positive – I think it’s not still not enough to actually get people out of the deep poverty that they’re existing in now,” said Clarke.
His colleague, Erika Ritchie, the official Opposition’s social services critic, said she’s wary of how these changes will end up working out for clients.
