The province’s Seniors’ Advocate says a recent online survey shows that the majority of seniors who responded say they’d have trouble making ends meet with an annual income of $50,000 or less.
Susan Walsh says she’s not surprised by that response, which is why she believes government must do more to help seniors with rising costs.
She was responding to the Seniors’ Health and Well-Being Plan released by government last week.
Walsh believes the thresholds set by government for access to supports and benefits are too low.
Government is saying they’re putting $2.5 million into the home repair and home modification program says Walsh, but if that’s only dealing with the wait list, “we’re no further ahead.” She says the cut-off right now is $32,500, “so you can’t even access the ability to try to do some repairs to your house.”