Westlock Family and Community Support Services (FCSS) has partnered with Service Canada for local outreach to help answer questions about their various services.
FCSS hosted an info session on Aug. 6 with full registration of around 20 people.
Service Canada was open for assistance on many of their services including the Canada Pension Plan, Old Age Security, Canada Dental Care Plan, Canada Disability Benefit, Employment Insurance, Social Insurance Numbers and general information on other programs and services.
Tracy Proulx, executive director of the Westlock FCSS, noted some of the most in-demand services in Westlock were the Canada Dental Care Plan and the Canada Disability Benefit.
Both services have had implementation issues recently mainly due to overwhelming numbers of applicants and the full registration for info in Westlock suggests demand for federal services remains high.
Health Canada has said 52 per cent of requests for complex dental work under the Canada Dental Care Plan have been rejected.
Meanwhile, 80,000 applications for the Canada Disability Benefit are still being processed according to the ministry of jobs and families.
Coverage for the Canada Dental Care Plan is accessible for anyone between the ages of 18 and 64 without access to dental insurance, a filed tax return in Canada, a family income of less than $90,000 and Canadian residency.
The Canada Disability Benefit was first implemented in July and is accessible to anyone with disabilities between the ages of 18 and 64 who has filed a federal income tax return and is a Canadian resident for income tax filing purposes.
The maximum benefit available for the Canada Disability Benefit is $200 per month and has led to the provincial government’s cutting of $49 million from the Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped (AISH) program from their 2025 budget. The receivable benefit amount is determined by marital status, employment income and whether a spouse or common-law partner is also receiving the benefit.
The FCSS plans to host future info sessions with Service Canada, especially with high registration for the Aug. 6 session.
The FCSS also plans to host further info sessions in the future with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) to answer any questions about federal taxes.
