Respite Funding Increased by $6.3-million
Good news! Increased funding will help 1,300 additional families receive respite support
More than 1,300 additional families with children who have special needs are benefiting from respite services by qualified caregivers, thanks to the expansion of the respite support program by the Ministry of Children and Family Development.
The expansion also provides an increase to the base funding amount each family can receive.
Karla Verschoor (Inclusion BC), Bobbi Taylor (BC Parents of Complex Kids) and Minister Katrine Conroy
“We’ve heard how incredibly important respite care is for families,” said Katrine Conroy, Minister of Children and Family Development.
“We are very pleased that this increase will help more than 1,300 additional families get off the waitlist — and receive the respite support they need to continue caring for their children,” said Karla Verschoor, Executive Director of Inclusion BC. “We would like to thank Minister Conroy for making this a priority. This is the first increase to this program since 1989, so it is very much needed. We look forward to continuing our work with the ministry with the goal of completely eliminating this waitlist.”
The $6.3-million boost to the Province’s respite program was announced in Budget 2019, and changes began to come into effect April 1, 2019. Five million dollars is being used to provide respite services for families who had previously been on the waiting list. The remaining $1.3 million is increasing the base annual funding amount each family can receive from $2,800 to $3,080, marking the first increase in respite funding since 1989.
Ministry Announcement: Number of families waiting for respite funding cut in half
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