Kids Can't Wait calls for change

Kids Can’t Wait Alberta used the start of the school year to press Alberta’s government over long waits for disability supports for children. The parent-led group said delays in the Family Support for Children with Disabilities program are leaving families without timely access to therapy, respite and other services. (rdnewsnow.com) The push came one day after federal rules took effect for a one-time $150 Canada Disability Benefit supplement, a payment Ottawa says is meant to offset the cost of obtaining the Disability Tax Credit. The two developments involve different programs and different governments, but both center on how families navigate disability supports. In Alberta, parents are focused on years-long waits for children’s services. (canada.ca) Federally, the new supplement addresses one upfront cost tied to benefit eligibility, while a federal ombudsperson has separately flagged long processing times for Disability Tax Credit applications. ### What is Kids Can’t Wait Alberta asking Alberta to change? Kids Can’t Wait Alberta said September 2 that the province should reduce wait times for Family Support for Children with Disabilities services, ensure resources keep pace with demand, and restore transparency so families know how long they may wait. (rdnewsnow.com) The group issued its statement just before the first day of school. Megan Hanson, a Sylvan Lake mother and member of the group, told rdnewsNOW that “nothing has changed” since she wrote about the issue in February 2025. Hanson said families are in the “same, if not worse, position” after another full provincial budget cycle. (rdnewsnow.com) ### How long are families saying they wait? Hanson told rdnewsNOW that her older child moved through FSCD with a wait of no more than four months several years ago. She said her younger son, who has autism and higher needs, waited two-and-a-half years to be accepted into the program. CBC News reported in June that an estimated 20,000 children were on Alberta’s FSCD waiting list and that families were waiting three or more years for a caseworker and therapy. (rdnewsnow.com) CBC said the figures came from provincial caseworkers through their union, the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees. ### What does FSCD cover, and why do parents say delay matters? FSCD provides support tied to the added costs of raising a child with disabilities, and Hanson said the program can include occupational therapy, speech therapy, extracurricular participation and regulation-skills support. (rdnewsnow.com) She said long waits undercut the purpose of early intervention. Hanson told rdnewsNOW that if a child is diagnosed at age two or three and then waits three or four years for approval, “you’ve really missed the entire early development window.” Kids Can’t Wait Alberta makes the same argument on its website, saying children can miss critical periods for development when support is delayed for years. (rdnewsnow.com) (cbc.ca) ### What is the new $150 federal disability payment? Employment and Social Development Canada said the government completed regulations for a $150 supplemental Canada Disability Benefit payment to all program recipients. The amendments were published in the Canada Gazette on July 1, 2026, and took legal effect on September 1, 2026. (rdnewsnow.com) The federal government said the supplement is a lump-sum payment meant to help cover the cost of obtaining the Disability Tax Credit, which is required to qualify for the Canada Disability Benefit. Ottawa said there is no need to apply separately for the supplemental amount. ### Why are watchdog concerns still part of this story? (rdnewsnow.com) The Office of the Taxpayers’ Ombudsperson said in a December 3, 2025 release, as cited by Canada News Media, that Disability Tax Credit applications were taking up to 15 weeks to approve, compared with the Canada Revenue Agency’s eight-week standard. The same report said retroactive tax adjustment requests linked to the credit could take up to 50 weeks, versus a 20-week standard for complex cases. (canada.ca) Those federal findings do not address Alberta’s children’s-services wait list directly, but they show another point where disabled Canadians can face delays before support arrives. In Alberta, Kids Can’t Wait Alberta said families want shorter waits and clearer information from the province. (canada.ca) Federally, Employment and Social Development Canada says payment timing information for the $150 supplement is available through the Canada Disability Benefit program page. (rdnewsnow.com) (canadanewsmedia.ca)