If you’re sick or are having trouble finding a job, you may need some help with money, to pay for food, rent or medicine. There are different programs that can help with some of these costs.
Welfare and Disability
In Ontario, you can apply for welfare (Ontario Works – OW) if you need help paying for food or rent. The application usually takes only two or three days to process. Welfare is usually for people who are looking for work, but if you’re sick and can’t work for a longer period of time, you can ask the welfare office about disability (Ontario Disability Support Program – ODSP). Welfare and disability don’t give a lot of money, but they can help with food, rent, and a drug card (to cover medical expenses).
Other provinces have their own welfare and disability programs. Check the phone book for local offices in your area.
Canada Pension Plan (CPP)
If you’ve worked before in Canada, your employer probably made deductions on your paycheque for Employment Insurance (EI) and CPP. When you retire (usually when you’re 65) you can collect CPP but CPP also has a disability program for people who can’t work because they’re sick. Click here for more information on how to apply for CPP Disability and remember you have the right to appeal if they say you don’t qualify.
Employment Insurance (EI)
EI is a program for people who have stopped working because they were laid off (EI Regular Benefits), had a baby (EI Maternity Benefits) or are too sick to work (EI Sick Benefits). EI payments cover a shorter period of time and it’s for people who have had a job in the last year or so.
Jobs with Benefits
Some jobs come with sick pay or disability benefits that can pay you if you have to stop working. You can ask your Human Resources (HR) department what coverage you have at work. You can also ask about Employment Assistance Programs (EAPs) which help people with short-term counselling or referrals.
If you think you got Hep C from a blood transfusion you might qualify for compensation depending on when you were first infected. You should know that very few injection drug users have ever gotten compensation and the application is long. You might need to get some help to fill it out. Here are the websites for the different compensation packages:
www.pre86post90settlement.ca/index.htm - The Pre-1986/Post-1990 Hepatitis C Settlement Agreement is for people who got Hep C from the blood supply before January 1, 1986 or between July 2, 1990 and September 28, 1998.
www.hepc8690.com - The Hepatitis C (HCV) January 1, 1986–July 1, 1990 Class Actions Settlement is for people who got Hep C between January 1, 1986 and July 1, 1990.
www.kpmg.ca/en/ms/hepatitisc/index.html - This is the Canadian Red Cross settlement for people who got Hep C supply before January 1, 1986 or between July 2, 1990 and September 28, 1998.
Provincial Hepatitis Assistance Plans
Ontario, BC, Manitoba and Quebec have set up provincial programs that give money to people who got Hep C from the blood supply. In Ontario, this program is called the Ontario Hepatitis C Assistance Plan (OHCAP).
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