On February 14, the Liberal government announced that seniors cut off from their guaranteed income supplement (GIS) will receive a one-time payment in April, with emergency funds available to those in dire financial circumstances as early as March.
“Seniors can finally breathe a sigh of relief after going through a horrible, unnecessary ordeal,” stated North Island-Powell River MP Rachel Blaney, NDP critic for seniors, in a media release. “For months, I have been hearing the most heartbreaking stories from vulnerable seniors who felt abandoned by this government.
"The pandemic has just been devastating for our country’s seniors and, instead of getting extra support, they had the GIS help cut off from them for accessing the pandemic aid they desperately needed. I’m so happy to see the government is finally taking action to fix its mistake."
The release stated that the federal government had announced it would provide an emergency payment to seniors cut off from the GIS during the fiscal update last fall, but many Canadians were shocked and dismayed to learn the financial help wouldn’t be available until May. Blaney and finance critic Daniel Blaikie (Elmwood-Transcona MP) advocated for more urgent help for more than 183,000 seniors who were left behind by the government’s clawback.
“It’s been a long wait for many seniors who have been hungry, missed medication or faced eviction,” stated Blaikie. “It’s about time the government is showing a sense of urgency to this problem of its own making. I hope the next time they receive a warning that their policies will cause serious hardship to Canada’s seniors that they act immediately, without months of political pressure to convince them.”
