| The furor over Premier Ralph Klein’s suggestion last week that some recipients of AISH may be undeserving freeloaders (a remark he hastily qualified) has had the effect of putting a spotlight on the province’s income program for the disabled, which many Albertans may not have even heard of before now. The timing couldn’t be better.
Klein’s comment comes as his government is in the midst of conducting a review of AISH (Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped), an initiative designed to provide income support for people who experience chronic, persistent and permanent health issues that prevent or limit their participation in the conventional labour force. Approximately 32,000 Albertans with physical disabilities, mental-health issues and developmental disabilities receive assistance from AISH. According to Thomas Lukaszuk, one of the two Tory MLAs on the review committee, "We need to ensure the program effectively supports the people who need it now and into the future."
Undoubtedly, AISH offers a measure of financial support and, sometimes more importantly, usually covers the cost of prescription drugs. However, as noted in the preamble to the AISH Act, this provision of support is also bounded by the ideological notion that "the Government of Alberta is committed to balancing the needs of persons who receive handicap benefits with accountability to the taxpayers of Alberta." Therefore, and not surprisingly, the amounts provided remain utterly inadequate for authentic and dignified community inclusion. It is tragic indeed that people on AISH, a program theoretically designed to "eliminate barriers to participation in society," remain consigned to poverty and subject to endemic social exclusion.
The sense of social exclusion became clear recently in conversations with a number of recipients of AISH. (Their last names have been withheld to maintain their privacy.)
Greg suggests being on the program involves "scraping by month to month and trying not to eat a lot. I ride a bike to get around, and I don’t have a phone which is a problem in this world of communication." The inadequacy of the stipend is made more difficult by a government that relies increasingly on overworked charity organizations instead of developing a comprehensive social policy on poverty. Greg notes there are "not enough resources, not enough money. They don’t provide enough community supports, and there is not enough affordable housing. I get by by couch surfing and a network of friends, but some don’t have the networks."
Tom, another AISH recipient who has family in the city, says "I have to phone my mom, she keeps giving me money." Certainly, family supports can help recipients meet some of the financial requirements of living in Calgary; but Brad, also on AISH, pointedly asks, "What about people who have no one?" Put bluntly, the program does not effectively support those who require assistance.
According to Statistics Canada’s low-income cut-off line, a single person living in a city of more than 500,000 would need a monthly after-tax income of $1,362 to be above the poverty line. People on AISH receive $850 per month, and as noted by Brad, "You’ve got to pay rent, buy food, bus passes and clothes…. I pay $600 in rent, and I’m trying to save for the future." And Jamal Ali adds, "it’s a tough struggle. It’s a fixed income and, with the cost of living in Calgary, it doesn’t take you far. Every day you have to watch your spending." Putting a slightly different spin on it, Greg suggests, "It’s difficult to participate simply because of poverty. I can’t buy books. You can’t eat books, of course, but I’d like to nourish the mental process." Murray adds, simply, "It’s hard."
In addition to the barriers raised by the financial hardships of a sorely inadequate income, people on AISH remain further marginalized by misperceptions of illness, particularly mental illness, and the way our society views the centrality of paid work as a determinant of social worth and importance. Dealing with a chronic illness and limited income interacts with social norms to create further stress. Hardly a pleasant combination.
"You feel you are committing a crime because of the way people perceive you," says Jamal Ali. "They say you are a parasite of the system… they say I should be locked up in Ponoka…. You have a feeling of guilt and shame because of the way society sees you."
However, it is a difficult process to get on AISH, involving an extensive medical and review process. Nevertheless, as Klein’s comments showed, there is still the lingering perception that the program is wasteful and there are many people on AISH who don’t actually require the supports. Greg indicates that broader society "doesn’t know what our lifestyle is like and they don’t have an understanding of disability."
Therefore, the AISH review is an important opportunity to raise public awareness of both AISH in particular and social exclusion in general. Given the provincial government’s track record, however, there is also understandable skepticism about both the process and the results; after all, the government’s review of social assistance, after much fanfare and gloss, resulted in a paltry $20-per-month increase for some categories of welfare recipients.
In addition to that unhappy precedent, the two-MLA committee won’t release their report until after the upcoming provincial election, which is generally a time of cost-cutting and containment rather than social-policy expansion.
"They (will) use this official review process and then say, ‘Sorry we don’t have any money,’" predicts Greg. "They don’t attack the real problem. They care about the financial bottom line, but if you’re not contributing they only feed you a few dollars." Adding an element of political analysis, he argues, "if you are not contributing as a worker or employer economically or financially, you’re not considered worthwhile."
"What is a disgrace is that this is a rich province," adds a passionate Jamal Ali. "Ralph Klein does not care about the common people in this province. We have to show Ralph Klein we have our dignity and our rights."
Tom hopes that the review will result in more money and allow him to "go to shows, have some good times, get more clothes, get groceries and pay the rent." Jim, after suggesting that AISH needs to be tied to increases in the cost of living, hopes he will be able to take his mother on a day trip to Banff. Still, the financial challenges of AISH are just one part of the issue. Certainly, information about the review will help increase public awareness of the financial inadequacy of the program. However, more broadly, it also presents an opportunity for greater discussion of issues of inclusion and authentic participation. As one long-time anti-poverty advocate notes, "It’s about fairness."
Information on the review can be obtained by calling 310-4455 or online at www.aishreview.gov.ab.ca. As well, a public forum on AISH and poverty in the community is being held Friday, November 5 at 1 p.m. at the Carpenters Union Hall. For more information, call 717-5613. |
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