QUEEN’S PARK – POLITICS – Long-time NDP Critic for Seniors and Persons Living with Disabilities, Lise Vaugeois (Thunder Bay–Superior North) issued the following statement on the pressing issue affecting hundreds of vulnerable adults with developmental disabilities in Ontario:
“In far too many instances, adults with developmental disabilities are being forced to live in hospitals due to the lack of appropriate housing in the community. One family has been waiting for seven years to move their son into a group home. Other families are desperate to find enough funding to pay for necessary PSW hours. Parents of adult children with disabilities are financially, physically, and emotionally exhausted, terrified of what will happen to their children as they themselves become too old to look after them.
“The Ontario Ombudsman’s report, Nowhere to Turn, published seven years ago, highlighted systemic issues faced by hundreds of adults with developmental disabilities and it is disheartening that these issues persist to this day. The Ombudsman’s announcement of a new investigation underscores the situation’s urgency.
“It is imperative that the Ford government take action to ensure that every Ontarian, including vulnerable adults and their families, can access the supports they need and deserve to lead dignified lives and that must include a range of safe, secure and appropriately staffed supportive housing.”
