With a mere three weeks remaining before funding contracts for people with developmental disabilities expires and no new contracts in sight, Alberta Human Services Minister Dave Hancock has indicated PDD service providers can extend their contracts.
However, nobody appears to know how long contracts can be extended and if service providers will need to sign some sort of agreement to participate in the extension.
“We’re no further ahead and no better able to start to respond to all of this. I was at a different meeting this morning (June 5) and even some of the definitions are being slightly altered and edited,” said Westlock Independence Network’s executive director Greg Morris. “It’s a mess, to say the least.”
Service providers have been told very little about the process of seeking an extension, Morris added, or devising some sort of business continuity plan. He said WIN’s provincial association has even asked for clarification about the recent news it received by e-mail.
Morris said new contracts were supposed to be issued to service providers by the end of May and then by June 5, but he has not seen the numbers yet.
“The truth is the e-mail that we got doesn’t say very much,” Morris said. “It mentions an extension without any details. It talks about staff wages without any numbers mentioned and it almost looks like this is just a delay tactic.”
More than one month ago, PDD northeast service providers announced a targeted reduction of $9 million as part of a $23 million budget cut with some service providers reporting cuts as high as 50 per cent. The Westlock Independence Network could lose as much as $408,332.
However, PDD spokesperson Cheryl Chichak has yet to respond to an e-mail from June 6 asking for more information about how long contracts can be extended and if service providers will need to sign some sort of agreement to participate in this process.
In an earlier e-mail, she said they will take the time needed to work with families, clients and contractors to ensure the PDD services and supports are in place to help individuals meet their goals.
“Some agencies are in a position to sign contracts now and we will get that done. For others it might take more time and we will do that to make sure we get it right for the individuals we support,” said Chichak.
Morris said there’s very few details about how much time is allowed, what’s involved or what the dollar figures are.
“They were supposed to be here two weeks ago,” said Morris.
“We don’t know what the extension involves. Do we have to sign an extension agreement? Do we pinch in on our current funding? We don’t know that yet.”
For more information about the upcoming changes, visit http://humanservices.alberta.ca/newsroom/16668.html.
