As part of its commitment to transform the developmental services system in Ontario, the provincial government continues to make strategic investments to strengthen services and reduce waiting lists.

Today the government announced that it will invest an additional $59 million per year in the following areas:

• $8.5 million for Special Services at Home – Special Services at Home (SSAH) provides funding directly to individuals and their families to purchase a broad range of services and supports such as respite or parental relief, or to hire a worker to teach daily living skills such as learning to ride the bus, participating in local recreational activities or getting dressed. The $8.5 million investment will reduce existing waiting lists for SSAH by 85 per cent.
  
  
• $9.4 million for Passport to Community Living – Passport to Community Living will provide meaningful day time activities for young people who have recently left the school system.
  
  In addition to enhancing funding for existing day supports, Passport to Community Living will encompass existing Foundations programs which help young adults make a successful transition from school to a wide range of community participation activities and/or work.
  
  Through Passport to Community Living, funding would also be available to families to give them the flexibility to purchase day supports that best meet the needs of their family members as they make the transition from school to the community.
  
  
• $25.9 million to serve people who need immediate care – Some community agencies have been addressing the needs of people with complex disabilities on a year-to-year basis, without permanent funding in their budgets. The government is giving service providers $25.9 million in permanent funds to strengthen their ability to serve people who are in a situation that requires immediate care, many of whom previously received services from the child welfare system or have aging parents.
  
  
• $15.1 million for community agencies – Agencies will also receive $15.1 million to help address costs related to staffing, infrastructure and client care. Funds may be used to address a variety of operating costs, including employee wages, improving safety and security and utility costs.

Increased Funding Builds on Past Commitments

Today’s investment of $59 million annually is in addition to the four-year $110 million investment the government announced in September 2004, bringing the total the government spends annually on developmental services to more than $1.25 billion.