Liberal MPs today came out in support of the Canadian Cancer Society’s plea for a national strategy that would provide more support services for patients and their caregivers.
“The Cancer Society’s call is in keeping with the Liberal plan to ease the pressure on Canadian families,” said Liberal Health Critic Dr. Carolyn Bennett. “More and more families are being squeezed by the cost of caring for aging or ill relatives – which is why we believe helping them is more important than giving more tax breaks to wealthy corporations using borrowed money.”
Last week, Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff said that a future Liberal government will help Canadian families shoulder the burden of care by providing financial support for family caregivers, which will help reduce costs in our health care system.
Today, the Canadian Cancer Society called on the Conservative government to increase financial benefits for family members who must take time off work to provide care. It suggested a tax benefit for caregivers to help with the costs associated with looking after a loved one with cancer.
“We’ve offered an alternative to the Conservative government plan that gives $6 billion in annual corporate tax cuts we can’t afford,” said Dr. Bennett. “The Liberal plan is to freeze corporate taxes, fight the deficit and make targeted investments like caring for our aging loved ones.”
According to Statistics Canada, as of 2007, three-quarters of people between the ages of 45 and 64 – many of whom would still have children living at home – were providing care for a senior. At the same time, Canadians have an average debt of $41,740 each – which is the worst among 20 advanced countries in the OECD. With interest rates expected to rise, that means Canadians will come under increasing financial strain to pay the costs associated with caring for aging family members.
Liberal Public Health Critic Dr. Kirsty Duncan said these numbers are alarming, and yet the Harper government is doing nothing to help ease the pressure on Canadian families – which also has a heavy cost on our economy.
“Eighty percent of at-home caregivers are family members who receive no financial support. Many have to leave the workforce, which carries a cost—not just for them, but for our economy,” said Dr. Duncan. “Meanwhile, hospitals and nursing homes have higher costs. Our health care system would be more sustainable if more families had the means to care for their loved ones at home – where they can live with greater dignity.”
The Cancer Society pointed out that Canada’s patchwork of support services means too many patients are unable to die with dignity in the setting of their choice. The majority of terminally ill Canadians want to spend their final days at home, but more than 55 percent of deaths occur in hospitals, at great cost to the public. The Cancer Society predicts that almost 174,000 Canadians will be diagnosed with cancer this year and more than 76,000 will die of the disease.
“The Liberal Party will make it easier for people to care for loved ones at home,” concluded Dr. Duncan. “Our plan is a win-win. Support family caregivers, and reduce costs in our health care system.”
