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Two petitions to “defend the most vulnerable”
president Chantal Crispin thought the asso- ciation was dragging its feet on the issue. At last count, about 1,500 people had signed the committee’s petition, related Crispin, administrator of a residence in Casselman. As for the association’s petition, president Nicole Normand hopes to present the re- quest to Queen’s Park by early December. The association has been meeting with Glengarry-Prescott-Russell Liberal MPP Grant Crack, who offered a sympathetic ear, says Normand. The campaigns began when the Ontario Ministry of Community and Social Services advised the Prescott-Russell social services department that as of January 1, 2013, the province would no longer reimburse discre- tionary expenses for people over the age of 65 living in retirement facilities. These ex- penses include eye and dental care, incon-
tinence supplies, orthotics and prosthetics, diabetic products, and transportation to medical appointments. For the entire counties, the amount in question is about $160,000 per year. The Prescott-Russell social services de- partment is ready to help cushion the im- pact of the cuts by continuing to reimburse costs for transportation for medical ap- pointments. This annual expenditure of $50,000 was approved Tuesday when counties council adopted the 2013 budget. The provincial decision has been con- demned by the committee as “physical and psychological abuse” of the elderly. “People are frightened,” Crispin said re- cently. The people who will be affected by the move have been reimbursed for discretion-
Plantagenet | A fatal accident along Coun- ty Road 9 has launched a special OPP highway patrol project. During the early-morning hours Nov. 22 police answered a call about an accident on County Road 9 south of Plantagenet. A vehicle was found in a neighbouring field. It had suffered serious damage and the body of the driver was found on the ground out- side of the vehicle. Investigation indicated the vehicle had been going at a high rate of speed when the accident occurred and the force of the impact threw the driver out of the vehicle. He was not wearing a seatbelt at the time. The driver, a 26-year-old Alfred-Plantagenet man, was pronounced dead at the scene. Police will pay special attention to traf- fic along the county road for the next two weeks because of concern about excessive speeding during all hours of the day and night. Motorists can expect surprise OPP check stops as police watch for speeders and also check to make sure everyone inside vehi- cles are using seatbelts. Police target County Road 9 At Tuesday’s counties council meeting, East Hawkesbury Mayor Robert Kirby said: “It is not fair to cut back on our senior citi- zens.” He urged officials to keep pressing the government to reverse the decision that was taken by the ministry’s Ottawa re- gional office. ary expenses over the past 20 years, Nor- mand has said. But, according to ministry policy, these benefits were destined for people receiving social assistance, not senior citizens. Nor- mand is adamant. Regardless of the motivation behind this decision, the association asserts that the vulnerable and the poor are paying the price for the austerity measure. Normand observes that the amount to be saved is miniscule, considering the size of the provincial budget and the multitude of other sectors where this saving could have been realized. The association warns that the absence of support from the government will deprive many elderly people of essential care and products. Counties officials have recognized that most of the current recipients of this assis- tance will not be able to access specialized medical care that is available only in Ottawa hospitals. The consequences of the ministry deci- sion will be“devastating”for those who now rely on discretionary expense reimburse- ments, the association cautions. “Let us not forget that these are the most vulnerable of our society: poor and elderly people who cannot live on their own,” states Normand. “It is a very sad way to thank them for their contributions to the comfortable lives most of us enjoy today.” VISION@EAP.ON.CA PRESCOTT-RUSSELL
RICHARD MAHONEY richard.mahoney@eap.on.ca
Two petitions that are circulating in Prescott-Russell have the same goal – de- fend the interests of poor senior citizens in the region against what are being called “devastating” cuts to government benefits. The 16-member Prescott-Russell resi- dence association and a newly-formed committee for the elderly are trying to con- vince the Ontario government to reverse a decision that would deprive about 250 people of reimbursement for discretionary expenses. The committee launched its petition be- fore the association because committee
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