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B.C. Seniors Face Long Wait for Care
28 Jan
Summary
- Long-term care waitlists have more than tripled since 2016.
- Seniors now wait an average of nearly 10 months for care.
- B.C. needs 16,000 new long-term care beds annually.
A report from British Columbia's seniors' advocate reveals a dramatic increase in wait times for long-term care (LTC) beds, with numbers surging over 200 per cent since 2016. Seniors are currently facing an average wait of nearly 10 months for a publicly funded spot, compared to five months in 2016.
The advocate stated that the growth in LTC beds has lagged significantly behind the rapid increase in the senior population. To keep pace, the province needs to add approximately 16,000 new LTC beds each year, a substantial increase from current plans which only account for a few thousand over the next five years.
Without a rapid expansion, families will bear the increasing burden of care, impacting their financial stability and workforce participation, particularly for women. Advocacy groups criticize the government's plans as "woefully inadequate" given the demographic trends, noting that B.C. lags behind other provinces in addressing seniors' care needs.
The Ministry of Health acknowledges the challenges and states that building more long-term care homes is part of its ongoing work, alongside investments in primary care, home health, and assisted living services. The ministry asserts that ensuring seniors receive timely care is a government priority.
