Alberta disability advocates warn new benefit program will deepen poverty

The province aims to transition those on AISH to a new program, the Alberta Disability Assistance Program, prompting warning from advocates.

Disability rights groups say the Alberta government’s plan to replace the current benefit system with a new program will push people further into poverty rather than offering them more opportunity.

The United Conservative Party (UCP) government plans to shift tens of thousands of people with disabilities from the Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped (AISH) program.

The Alberta Disability Assistance Program (ADAP), scheduled to start in July 2026, will reduce the maximum monthly benefit to $1,740 — $200 less than what AISH currently provides.

Advocacy group Inclusion Alberta says that change will leave many Albertans with disabilities further below the poverty line.

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The province argues the new program will modernize disability supports by separating people who are permanently unable to work from those who may have some capacity for employment.

Trish Bowman, CEO of Inclusion Alberta, said the government’s assumptions are unrealistic and risk forcing thousands into deeper poverty. She stressed that AISH already allows people to work without penalty up to a reasonable threshold, and warned the new program sets the bar far lower while ignoring systemic barriers.

“We’re not going to generate enough well-paying jobs for people with disabilities to make them better off than if they just left AISH alone,” Bowman said. “There are all kinds of systemic and attitudinal barriers to employment, and we are deeply concerned we’re going to see a lot of people driven into deeper poverty.”

In a written statement, the press secretary for Jason Nixon, the minister of assisted living and social services, said ADAP is intended to expand opportunities while maintaining essential supports.

The statement emphasized that health benefits will be protected even as clients’ earnings rise, and highlighted new services such as training, job placements and case management to help people with disabilities prepare for and sustain employment.

It also stressed the government’s view that the program will offer greater flexibility than AISH and help Albertans “live with dignity and independence.”

“ADAP will give Albertans with disabilities more opportunity to work while continuing to receive the supports they rely on,” the statement said.

“No one will lose health benefits because they choose to seek employment. That is a cornerstone of the new program.”

In a statement to CTV News, another disability rights group called Albertans Advocating for Change Together (AACT) said: “Instead of improving the lives of Albertans with disabilities, this new program will leave most of us worse off financially and place new barriers in front of people already struggling.”

Alex Jack, an AISH recipient and AACT member, said the changes will have a direct impact on his daily life.

“Probably the first thing to go would be being able to feed myself, because grocery prices are expensive,” said Jack. “And with the rising costs in rent, the rising costs in living overall, people are struggling, and a lot of folks are being in this position where they have to choose whether or not to pay rent, or to pay for groceries.

“So, a lot of people are going without eating. Or then we have folks ending up unhoused on the streets because they can’t afford to pay rent, and a lot of those folks have disabilities.”

While the government points to higher earning exemptions in ADAP as an incentive, critics highlight the trade-off. Under today’s AISH rules, a single person can earn just over $1,000 a month before deductions begin.

Under ADAP, that threshold drops to $350.

Economist Gillian Petit, who conducted an independent analysis of the ADAP framework, said the government’s projections overstate the benefits of the program.

She argued the lower base benefit combined with reduced exemptions means most recipients will be worse off unless they can maintain steady, higher-paying work.

“This ADAP program is going to fail on all the metrics that the government’s promised,” Petit said.

“It’s going to fail to empower Albertans with disabilities because it removes their choice, and it’s going to fail to provide higher earnings exemptions. People are going to have lower benefits unless they’re working at least a part-time minimum wage job.”

Petit added that while the province claims people will be able to keep more of their earnings, the trade-off leaves recipients behind.

“Because the benefit rate is starting at a lower amount, people are actually overall going to have less benefits,” she said.

Chris Ryan, a Calgary lawyer living with progressive multiple sclerosis, has been on AISH for years while struggling to find work.

He says his experience highlights both the potential and the pitfalls of the government’s new approach.

Ryan acknowledges that people like him, who may be able to return to higher-paying work, could eventually benefit — but stresses that most Albertans on disability programs are not in that position.

“Not a chance. I don’t buy the argument at all. They (the UCP) were voted into office on the promise that they would increase benefits to index them to inflation, which they did, but now they’re trying to take that away, which is upsetting in a democracy,” he said.

“They give one example in their materials of a guy working an extra 68 hours a month, but he’s only taking home an extra $500. That’s a lot of work for not much gain. You’re working for less than minimum wage.”

The government also says ADAP clients will retain health benefits even if their earnings rise beyond financial eligibility, something not currently available under AISH. It has pledged expanded employment services, such as job placements, training and case management, to help people with disabilities pursue careers.

Families, however, would see reductions in income exemptions.

Spousal and parental income thresholds would be lowered, which Inclusion Alberta warns could push households with children closer to poverty.

Eligibility rules are also shifting. AISH will be reserved for people deemed permanently unable to work, while anyone assessed as having some potential for employment will be directed to ADAP.

The advocacy group argues this framework risks excluding people who may not realistically be able to secure stable jobs, leaving them financially vulnerable.

Applications will be reviewed under a new medical panel process. Decisions about AISH eligibility will not be appealable, a change Inclusion Alberta says removes a safeguard for applicants.

All current AISH recipients are to be moved into ADAP when it launches, with a temporary top-up to offset the $200 cut until the end of 2027.

After that, benefits will fall unless clients requalify under the stricter AISH rules.

The province maintains the new structure will give people with disabilities more opportunity to work while still receiving essential supports. Inclusion Alberta counters that the changes will reduce financial security for most of the 77,000 Albertans who rely on disability assistance.