Excerpt from Budget 2018 – Budget Papers – Chapter I
Investing in Developmental Services
Ontario is committed to building a fair society where people with developmental disabilities can live independent, healthy and inclusive lives. Over the past decade, the government has transformed the developmental services sector to better support approximately 47,000 adults with developmental disabilities through a community-based approach that enables choice and active participation in the community. To enhance continuity across the system, the government introduced supports to ease the transition from youth to adult services, so that care for families remains reliable and uninterrupted. Investments also supported tools to help families navigate available services to ensure that families can make the best informed choices for their households.
Starting in 2018, Ontario will invest an additional $1.8 billion over three years to expand services for people living with developmental disabilities, including:
- Expanding direct funding to the Passport program to ensure that more than 40,000 eligible people with a developmental disability will receive at least $5,000 per year, providing choice and flexibility in receiving critical supports and services;
- Providing resources for case management and planning supports that will help youth access relevant services as they transition to adulthood, including paths to postsecondary education, employment and financial resources;
- Implementing a 24/7 emergency hotline to provide immediate support to individuals and families with urgent needs and to deploy front-line professionals to prevent crisis situations;
- Strengthening training for police and front-line justice sector workers to identify and potentially divert individuals with developmental disabilities from the justice system, directing them to more appropriate services when needed;
- Supporting more than 800 people with developmental disabilities who are inappropriately housed in hospitals, long-term care homes, shelters or correctional facilities in moving into suitable, safe homes in their community;
- Encouraging innovative housing solutions at the community level that will increase residential capacity and improve in-home supports, including respite for caregivers to alleviate the challenges associated with full-time care, allowing people to live at home longer; and
- Funding increases of more than $200 million over three years to over 350 community-based agencies to continue the delivery of high-quality services and enhance the capacity of service providers, ensuring long-term sustainability of the sector.
Through these additional investments, the government is building on its work over the past decade to transform the way it supports individuals with developmental disabilities.
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