By Lauren Thayer from In The Cloud Copy
COVID-19 has brought life to a screeching halt for everyone across the world. Schools cancelled, work transitioned to remote, all activities cancelled, restaurants closed… the list goes on. While this has been life-altering for everyone, there are many groups of individuals who feel the impact of this deeper than others. Individuals living with a disability of any kind are likely feeling the effects of this pandemic in a way unlike the rest of us.
A Personal Tale
Riki Entz, who is autistic and uses a wheelchair, knows the struggles all too well. She was possibly exposed to COVID-19, and thus, she and her partner were forced to quarantine. They quickly ran into problems with cleaning, taking out the garbage, and getting groceries. Entz eventually reached out to her employer who helped them find groceries and also delivered some gloves. Entz hopes these generous offerings are the start of more support for the disabled community, which is something they have sought for many years.
Discrepancies in Monetary Support
The parallel between poverty and disability in Canada is not a foreign concept. Further, women, single parents, persons of color, and those with severe disabilities were at further risk of poverty. While disability benefits do exist, they are a mere $1,200 per month, which is not nearly enough to support a person throughout. In comparison, the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), which was distributed to individuals earning less than $1,000 due to COVID-19, was $2,000 per month. Many question why there is such a discrepancy in the disability benefit and the CERB – a point that is being further examined.
Essential Caregivers
Many disabled individuals rely on caregivers to assist in their care. The pandemic has halted much care that disabled individuals receive as caregivers or personal support workers are limited to one facility. While some individuals can rely on family members or friends, not all have those resources. Further, caregiving is hard work and may not be possible by family members, especially elderly parents.
The pandemic has highlighted the poor conditions in long-term care homes due to factors such as shortages in staff and resources, problems that many say they have been trying to draw attention to for some time. Further, many individuals with disabilities in Canada are living in nursing homes due to lack of the ability to provide sufficient resources for care at home or accessible, affordable housing.
Many of these issues could have been avoided if essential caregivers were valued more. If they were more valued, they would be readily available and much of the above could be avoided.
Looking Forward
Moving forward, people with disabilities want to be heard in Canada, and it looks like things are changing in their favor. The federal government created the COVID-19 Disability Advisory Group in April. The group advises the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion on the challenges facing those with disabilities and different approaches to overcome those challenges.
Further, the Canadian federal government announces it was spending $6.4 billion in funding over the next several years to “develop best practice tools and resources in the areas of accessible workplaces, accessible service design and delivery, and communication.”
All of these are giant steps forward in dissolving the barriers that exist. While the pandemic has been life-altering for everyone, it is a breath of fresh air to see a government taking what they see and making a positive change moving forward.
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