Feds’ dental care plan to come this fall, but disability advocates have concerns

The federal government hasn't said how people will be required to prove that they're disabled in order to qualify for the insurance plan.

The federal government’s new dental insurance plan has yet to be introduced, but advocates are warning the eligibility criteria for people with disabilities could be cumbersome and may not capture everyone who should have access to the program.

The details of the insurance plan are expected to be announced this fall, with a goal to eventually provide dental benefits to qualifying kids under the age of 18, seniors and people with disabilities.

The Liberals promised in their supply-and-confidence agreement with the NDP that dental coverage will ultimately be offered to all people with a household income under $90,000 per year by the end of 2024.

The government hasn’t said how people will be required to prove that they’re disabled in order to qualify for the insurance plan.

But it typically relies on the list of people who access the disability tax credit to determine who should receive other disability-related programs, said Disability Without Poverty national director Rabia Khedr.

The list of people who access the tax credit “is not the best list for them to work from,” because it doesn’t always capture the people with disabilities who could benefit most from the dental program, she said in an interview Friday.

“It’s incumbent on people filing their taxes,” she explained, which many people with especially low incomes don’t do.

Even those who file their taxes may not qualify or even bother to apply for the tax credit because they don’t have the resources.