The Fraser Health Authority is being heavily criticized by the B.C. Nurses' Union for its plan to charge residential care home residents a fee for wheelchair use.
Union president Debra McPherson says it's "disgraceful" that the health authority will charge seniors in publicly-funded care homes $25 a month for wheelchair use, beginning Sept. 1.
"This is a callous, uncaring move by health authorities that are increasingly forgetting their mandate to provide quality care and are instead obsessing continuously about cutting budgets," McPherson said in a written release. "Seniors in long-term care do best when they can get out of their rooms and socialize with other residents to keep their minds active and maximize their quality of life. Forcing them to pay extra fees for what is an essential service is just unacceptable."
Fraser Health spokesperson Tasleem Juma said the fees will cover a portion of the maintenance, repair and replacement costs of wheelchairs at the public care facilities. For those who cannot afford the monthly $25 fee, there will be an option to apply for exemption, she noted.
"If you feel that this is going to cause you a hardship in terms of your finances, then you are more than welcome to apply for the waiver," she said.
Low-income residents who do not have to pay MSP premiums or receive disability benefits are automatically exempt from paying the fee.
Besides helping to recoup costs, the fee will bring Fraser Health up to date with the provincial health authority's mandate that residents can be charged for personal use items at publicly-funded facilities, Juma said.
"The objective is obviously not to cause hardship to the residents," she said. "The objective is to come in line with what occurs across the board in the province and to bring us also in line with what happens in contracted facilities."
The Vancouver Coastal Health Authority is also planning to introduce the wheelchair fee as of Sept. 1.
In Burnaby, the Fraser Health Authority owns and operates one care home - Fellburn Care Centre - while another 10
facilities have beds subsidized by the health authority. Residents at these contracted facilities must rent or purchase wheelchairs from a third-party, Juma noted. The cost to purchase a wheelchair is typically between $1,000 and $3,500, she said.
