By: Maria Babbage, The Canadian Press
TORONTO - Draft regulations aimed at improving conditions in hundreds of Ontario retirement homes are actually creating a false sense of security for seniors and their families, critics warned Tuesday.
The proposed rules essentially leave the regulation of retirement homes — and the care of an estimated 40,000 seniors — up to the industry, not the government, said NDP health critic France Gelinas.
"It gives this false sense of government oversight when this couldn't be further from the truth," she said.
"We have set up an agency self-regulation model in an industry where you have this captive audience of very frail, elderly people who cannot advocate for themselves in many cases. And as we know, it makes for fertile ground for people with bad intentions."
The governing Liberals released the first set of draft rules on Tuesday, which follow legislation passed last June over the objections of the New Democrats.
The proposed rules would set care and safety standards, and allow for inspections and police background checks for new staff and volunteers by the Retirement Homes Regulatory Authority.
The regulations would also establish residents' rights, including the right to know the true cost of care, and require that homes have written policies promoting zero tolerance of abuse and neglect.
Sophia Aggelonitis, the minister responsible for seniors, said she welcomes public comment on the draft rules — which were published on a government website — over the next 45 days.
"They are an important part of our plan to provide strong protections for seniors who are living in retirement homes," she said.
"The proposed regulations, in fact, cover a range of very important areas including care and safety standards, licensing and inspections, as well as enforcement of retirement homes."
About 40,000 seniors currently live in more than 700 retirement homes in Ontario, according to government estimates. That number is expected to grow as the population ages.
But the government took far too long to draft rules for retirement homes, said the Progressive Conservatives, who supported the legislation.
"All Ontarians — especially in an aging population, which we are — are looking for security for their loved ones," said Tory critic Peter Shurman.
"This is way overdue and the government should be ashamed for having taken this long."
Retirement homes are different from nursing homes, or long-term care, which are licensed and funded by the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care.
Local health officials determine which seniors are eligible for admittance to a nursing home, whereas seniors who wish to live in a retirement home are tenants and decide which services they're willing to pay for.
Ontario's ombudsman started a probe into whether the government is doing enough to ensure safety in nursing homes following a 2008 investigation by The Canadian Press.
It found that more than three quarters of long-term care homes in the province had been cited for failing to meet some government standards.
Watchdog Andre Marin released his findings in December, saying there are "serious, systemic problems" with the Ontario government's oversight of long-term care facilities, which house 75,000 people in the province.
The provincial watchdog said he was "guardedly optimistic" new legislation and changes at the Ministry of Health would address the concerns.