Disability advocates: Close Canada institutions, improve job access
December 5th, 2009From the Montreal Gazette, Toronto Star:
Canada must end institutionalization of mentally disabled people and invest in their quality of life by improving access to jobs and social supports, says a report released to coincide with the International Day of Persons with Disabilities.
The report by the Canadian Association for Community Living found that only a quarter of Canadians who have an intellectual disability and live alone are employed, and almost 75 per cent of them live in poverty.
The group also called for the closing of Canada’s three remaining large-scale institutions, which house some 900 people in Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan, and called for community-based services to take their place. “Living in an institution is not living,” said Bendina Miller, president of the association.
Related story: Govt. report finds 60 percent of Israelis with disabilities live in poverty; Many are isolated — YnetNews, Tel Aviv
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