Province should address 'inequities between public and private services' says P.E.I. Home Care Association
Delivery of service is based on assessed need and meeting eligibility criteria, says province
The province should means-test Islanders seeking public home care, the Prince Edward Island Home Care Association says.
- Enhanced home care could better match seniors' needs, report says
- Seniors' healthcare system complex and confusing: report
- Demand increasing for P.E.I. paramedics palliative home care program
Priority now goes to people with the greatest health care need, based on available resources — but income and assets aren't considered.
If someone is seeking community care, their income and assets are weighed, and income is considered when applying for nursing home care.
"Our big concerns are the inequities between public and private services," said association president David McMillan. The P.E.I. Home Care Association represents private home care companies on the Island.
"Means testing needs to be consistent and at present, it's not."
Not including income-testing in home care means people who could afford to pay for private care are eating up public resources, McMillan said, leaving some who can't afford to pay with nowhere to turn.
"You also have individuals who are being discharged from the hospital — they're medically discharged but they can't go home without care. And if home care isn't available, they can't afford private home care, then they are staying in the hospital," explained McMillan.
"They're looking for loopholes in the system," McMillan said. "Sometimes, people are bypassing community care and trying to get into nursing care."
Health PEI does not create wait lists for home care, officials said. Thirty per cent of new referrals are from hospitals, with every effort made to get patients home as soon as possible.
Patients are also routinely asked if they have private insurance, or a way to access this help in another way, Health PEI said.
In the 2015 fiscal year, 4,213 Islanders received home care, 56 per cent of which were over the age of 75, according to health officials.
- MORE P.E.I. NEWS | P.E.I. biathlete in close competition for Olympic team spot
- MORE P.E.I. NEWS | Too much sun: P.E.I. Cancer society to host sun safety demonstration
With files from Laura Chapin