A recent review of the contracted long-term care sector by The Office of the Seniors Advocate found that for-profit operators are extracting profits for investors from public dollars while under-delivering care hours at alarming rates compared to non-profit operators. For-profit facilities earned 7 times as much profit as not-for-profit facilities in 2021-2022 even when receiving the same amount of public funding. For-profit operators did this by under-delivering 500,000 direct care hours!
A standardized funding model is essential to move towards consistent quality of care standards and accountability around use of public funds. The current model incentivizes operators to spend less money on care hours, food, and maintenance because they get to turn anything they don't spend into profit.
Instead, we need to ensure that public money is spent on on a consistent and high level of care in long-term care homes across BC, especially in smaller communities outside of Metro Vancouver where choice is limited.
We need a provincial funding model that:
- Requires that funding for care be spent on care.
- Improves accuracy and transparency of reporting to keep operators accountable for publicly funded care hours.
- Ensures common employment conditions across the sector by standardizing wages, benefits and working conditions.
- Is co-developed with key stakeholders in the long-term care sector including workers and their unions, resident and family councils, and seniors organizations.
If you are a family member, worker, senior or just a concerned individual, share your support for funding reform and let Minister Dix know why this matters to you. Once you sign up, you will receive a free postcard that you can fill in with your story and mail directly to the Minister of Health.
