The Saskatchewan Seniors Mechanism (SSM) is saying there are things left to be desired when it comes to platform promises involving older adults in the provincial election campaign.
“What always seems to be missed is the understanding that older adults are a very broad range of people, of needs and abilities,” said SSM spokesperson Linda Anderson. “What is missing in all of the promises is a comprehensive plan that will cover the whole range.”
Anderson said that while investment in long-term care has hogged much of the spotlight when it comes to seniors support, the SSM estimates that just seven per cent of older adults in Saskatchewan currently live in such facilities.
“Yes, we understand how important it is to have good long-term care, but when we think about the other 93 per cent of older adults, there’s a lot of work that needs to be done to keep our group as healthy and contributing as we can,” Anderson said.
“Older adults are contributing close to $1 billion to the Saskatchewan economy through volunteering, caregiving, employment, using facilities and paying their taxes. So we’re most concerned that a comprehensive plan will examine and support older adults to be able to remain in their communities, to be active and to be able to contribute so that our whole province will benefit from”
Among other promises, the Saskatchewan Party is pledging to hire 300 new continuing care aides and increase the maximum benefit from the Seniors Income Plan from $270 per month to $360 per month over four years.
Anderson, though, was skeptical that the raise would have a significant impact on the ability of in-older adults to pay for home care.
“This is for people who are really in need. So over four years it’s going to go up to $360 a month. Calculate that and think about what would be the real difference for that person.”
Anderson added that at a recent virtual town hall organized by the SSM featuring current Seniors Minister Warren Kaeding, attendees took issue with the Saskatchewan Party’s promise to knock 10 per cent off all SaskPower bills for one year if elected.
“What difference does that really make for most of us if taken off our power bill? But it’s a really large promise — millions of dollars not received. Could that be spent elsewhere that could have more of an effect?
She also said that while she heard some “encouraging things” from Kaeding about helping older adults who want to remain in the workforce, she felt he didn’t much else to the meeting beyond goals for long-term care.
“We didn’t hear a lot about what happens as you age except to move almost immediately to long-term care,” she said, pointing out that people are now living decades past the age of retirement. “I think what’s missing, is again — we need to plan for that.”
The Saskatchewan NDP, meanwhile, is promising to hire 500 new continuing care aides and build “the best home care in Canada”, according to their platform.
But Anderson said the commitment lacks concrete details on how in-home care would be made accessible.
“I don’t think their platform has gone as far as what SSM and the people that talk to us are encouraging,” Anderson explained, “which is more of a program where there would be trusted pools of people who could do housekeeping, or are experts in renovations. And I don’t think people would object to some kind of sliding scale. Those people who are financially troubled or whose income is low, maybe things are subsidized completely.”
Saskatchewan is one of very few jurisdictions in Canada without a comprehensive seniors care strategy.
“There’s good examples out there. It’s happening. And it’s time for Saskatchewan to make it happen too,” Anderson said. “Nova Scotia’s plan is terrific.”
In 2017, the Nova Scotia government announced it was investing $13.7 million over three years to implement 50 specific actions identified in SHIFT: Nova Scotia’s Action Plan for an Aging Population.
An 18-month progress report showed investments in rural transportation, older adult employment and entrepreneurship, age-friendly community planning, and affordable housing for seniors, which included forgivable loans for builders.
“Nova Scotia seems small but driving in rural Nova Scotia on little twisting highways takes a lot longer than in Saskatchewan and most towns are fairly small,” said Anderson, whose 85-year-old sister recently moved to the Maritime province from Ottawa. “A builder there has had some grant support to build residences for older people.”
The residences Anderson mentioned rent for $1,200 a month and include a living room, bathroom, kitchen, two bedrooms and a small backyard patio.
“Nothing in Ottawa could remotely compare to the residence. Also, while she has two artificial hips, she is able to live independently, especially now that she doesn’t have three floors and a big yard to look after,” Anderson added.
According party platform material, the Saskatchewan government has invested $43 million to create over 500 housing units for seniors since 2007.
Anderson stressed that the SSM isn’t looking to take an adversarial stance against whoever ends up forming government.
She believes that a collaborative approach is the only way that positive aging policy can best be implemented.
“We see bits and pieces in platforms that could be helpful but we think it won’t be effective unless there is a planning process that includes municipalities and older people themselves. It needs to include more than SSM,” she said. “Our message is: let’s work together on a plan that will truly benefit all older adults.”
According to the Saskatchewan Bureau of Statistics, adults aged 65 and older make up about 21 per cent of all adults in Saskatchewan.