Marie Lee and her family stepped off a plane in Calgary on Tuesday, ready to start a new life — but for all of Western Canada's charms, their move had more to do with getting out of Ontario.
Lee had received news that her nearly three-year-old daughter, who has severe autism, would not be able to receive funding from the province's autism program until at least 2027. And the family couldn't afford her care without that help.Before they even left Ontario this week, they'd already secured funding from the Alberta government to place their child in a daycare that provides autism-specific services.
"People have the understanding that once you create your access OAP online account, that means that you are off the wait-list, and you are now going to be receiving funding. However, that is not the case," said Lee. In March 2021, the Ontario government announced changes to the autism program, promising to double its annual budget from $300 million to $600 million. But there was a backlash from parents and advocates who said that the government needed to do more to address the limited availability of services and rebuild trust with parents.
For Lee, the situation was untenable enough that she spent the past year researching other provinces' programs for children with autism. She settled on Alberta.
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