Overview
Residents living in type A (formerly known as nursing homes, auxiliary hospitals) and type B (formerly known as designated supportive living) continuing care homes are responsible for paying an accommodation charge. Examples of things covered by accommodation charges include:
- rooms
- meals
- housekeeping
- routine building maintenance
Health care services in type A and type B continuing care homes are publicly funded at no cost to residents.
Accommodation charges
Starting April 1, 2024, continuing care homes will adhere to the Continuing Care (Ministerial) Regulation, which oversees accommodation charges. The Alberta government sets the maximum resident accommodation charge in type A and type B continuing care homes. In supportive living settings, the accommodation charge is set by the operator and can vary from facility to facility.
Effective August 1, 2024, the maximum resident accommodation charge in type A and type B continuing care homes will be adjusted annually based on whichever is lower: a) either the increase in the Alberta Consumer Price Index over the past year or (b) 3.8%. This approach aims to promote affordability for residents and uphold quality of care.
Since 2022, Government has provided operators a subsidy on behalf of residents due to unusually high inflation.
Maximum resident accommodation charges for type A and type B continuing care homes for April 1, 2024 to July 31, 2024 are shown in the tables below.
Table 1. Continuing care home (types A and B) resident accommodation charges for April 1 to July 31, 2024 – Subsidized rates
| Impacted residents | All residents | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Occupancy | 1 resident | 2 persons (charge is stated in per person amount) | ||
| Room type | Daily | Daily | ||
| Shared room | $64.85 | n/a | ||
| Private room | $74.95 | $54.65 | ||
| 1 Bedroom suite | $89.80 | $62.10 | ||
| Multi-bedroom suite | $103.30 | $68.85 | ||
Table 2. Continuing care home (types A and B) accommodation charges for April 1 to July 31, 2024 – Full Accommodation Revenue (includes resident charge and government subsidy)
| Impacted residents | No residents are subject to these amounts as it includes a government subsidy to operators | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Occupancy | 1 resident | 2 persons (charge is stated in per person amount) | ||
| Room type | Daily | Daily | ||
| Shared room | $66.30 | n/a | ||
| Private room | $76.60 | $54.65 | ||
| 1 Bedroom suite | $89.80 | $62.10 | ||
| Multi-bedroom suite | $103.30 | $68.85 | ||
Starting August 1, 2024, the maximum resident accommodation charges for type A and type B continuing care homes are shown in the tables below.
Table 3. Continuing care home (types A and B) resident accommodation charges – Subsidized rates
Resident charges will increase by 3.8% effective August 1, 2024. As per the Continuing Care (Ministerial) Regulation this is the maximum amount that resident charges can be increased on a yearly basis. Government will also be providing an additional subsidy to operators to contribute towards accommodation related costs for operators.
| Impacted residents | All residents | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Occupancy | 1 resident | 2 persons (charge is stated in per person amount) | ||
| Room type | Daily | Daily | ||
| Shared room | $67.30 | n/a | ||
| Private room | $77.80 | $56.75 | ||
| 1 Bedroom suite | $93.20 | $64.45 | ||
| Multi-bedroom suite | $107.25 | $71.45 | ||
Table 4. Continuing care home (types A and B) Full Accommodation Revenue (includes resident charge and government subsidy)
| Impacted residents | No residents are subject to these amounts as it includes a government subsidy to operators | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Occupancy | 1 resident | 2 persons (charge is stated in per person amount) | ||
| Room type | Daily | Daily | ||
| Shared room | $69.10 | n/a | ||
| Private room | $79.80 | $56.95 | ||
| 1 Bedroom suite | $93.55 | $64.70 | ||
| Multi-bedroom suite | $107.65 | $71.75 | ||
Alternate Level of Care Accommodation Charge
If you are in the hospital receiving care, your condition may improve or change to a point where the hospital care team decides your care needs no longer require hospital services. It may be determined that you would best be cared for in type A or type B continuing care home.
If a type A or type B continuing care home is not immediately available to meet your needs and preferences, you may be required to stay in the hospital while waiting for a space to become available.
If you are staying in a hospital bed while awaiting a move into a type A or type B space, you will be charged a fee called an Alternate Level of Care (ALC) Accommodation Charge.
These charges are set at the rate currently charged for a shared room type noted in the accommodation rates above. This charge does not apply if your move is for end-of-life care.
Contact your care team to help you explore possible government income supports and other benefits if the ALC Accommodation Charge will cause you financial hardship.
Financial help
In type A and type B continuing care homes, accommodation charges may be fully or partly covered for low income residents who are eligible for the Alberta Seniors Benefit or clients of the Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped (AISH) program.
As of January 2024, residents who are eligible for benefits through these programs will be assured of retaining $357 per month in disposable income. This amount is available for personal expenses such as personal hygiene items, telephone, television, etc.
News
- Keeping continuing care affordable for residents (March 31, 2023)
- Inflation relief portal and payments coming soon (January 9, 2023)
- Making life more affordable for Albertans (December 7, 2022)