You can also find the summary report for this challenge here. Download the full conference summary report here.
A growing number of Canadians now belong to what is commonly known as the "sandwich" generation--people forced to meet the needs of their children and of their aging parents at the same time. Between making homecare payments for their parents and covering their children's tuition fees, these Canadians face difficult choices not common to past generations. It has led to a a redefinition of the family, today characterized by diversity.
As the population ages, more and more Canadians are facing this new reality. While at the close of the 1960s about 8 percent of our population was composed of seniors, by 2017 that figure will have doubled. This situation demands that we redefine the responsibilities of a 21st-century government in the provision of economic security for its citizens.
Thousands of retired Canadians will run into a wall on their retirement. At present, one-third of Canadians have no savings set aside for their retirement, and will therefore receive only the few thousand dollars a year provided by federal programs. Another one-third has not saved enough to maintain an acceptable standard of living during retirement. If nothing is done to reverse this situation and as the population continues to age, a large percentage of Canadians could end up in financial difficulty in the years to come, which will inevitably have a harmful impact on the country's econ
You can also find the summary report for this challenge here. Download the full conference summary report here.
A growing number of Canadians now belong to what is commonly known as the “sandwich” generation–people forced to meet the needs of their children and of their aging parents at the same time. Between making homecare payments for their parents and covering their children’s tuition fees, these Canadians face difficult choices not common to past generations. It has led to a redefinition of the family, today characterized by diversity.
As the population ages, more and more Canadians are facing this new reality. While at the close of the 1960s about 8 percent of our population was composed of seniors, by 2017 that figure will have doubled. This situation demands that we redefine the responsibilities of a 21st-century government in the provision of economic security for its citizens.
Thousands of retired Canadians will run into a wall on their retirement. At present, one-third of Canadians have no savings set aside for their retirement, and will therefore receive only the few thousand dollars a year provided by federal programs. Another one-third has not saved enough to maintain an acceptable standard of living during retirement. If nothing is done to reverse this situation and as the population continues to age, a large percentage of Canadians could end up in financial difficulty in the years to come, which will inevitably have a harmful impact on the country’s economy.
Our health care system, justifiably a source of national pride, is also facing new challenges. In 2007, total health care costs in Canada amounted to 9.8 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) compared to 7 percent in 1975. Advances in medicine partly account for this rise, given the increasingly onerous cost of new technology. This trend, combined with population aging, could translate into higher overall health costs in the years to come.
For example, according to the Alzheimer’s Society of Canada, one case of Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders was diagnosed every five minutes in Canada in 2008. In 2038, new cases will be diagnosed every two minutes, with the number of Canadians living with one or other of these illnesses expected to exceed 1.13 million.
While the economic burden of these illnesses adds up to $15 billion today, the cost will climb to $153 billion by 2038. We must act now to invest in research to limit the impact of this tsunami, while reflecting on ways to care for the people who will succumb to these diseases in the years to come.
More generally, given that our public health care system will be funded by a diminishing number of Canadians in the workforce, it is high time to find answers to lowering the costs of our system.
In this regard, preventing illness and promoting health are not only a good way of improving the quality of life of Canadians, but are also unquestionably the surest means of controlling the galloping costs of our health care system.
According to the Heart and Stroke Foundation, a significant decrease in the prevalence of high blood pressure combined with a reduction in the number of smokers in Canada could generate savings of some $76 billion by 2020. We, therefore, seem to have reached a crossroads that demands we shift our focus more to the health of Canadians, than the health care they need now and in future.
Apart from the necessary prevention, persisting inequities in the drug insurance field also deserve further thought. In Canada, medication administered outside hospitals is not automatically covered by the federal public system. In 2005, Canadians paid $4 billion out of their own pockets for medication. Considering the rising cost of medication, we can expect Canadians to spend a growing percentage of their income on medication unless something is done.
Various other issues also have an indirect but significant impact on public health: poverty, affordable housing and child care services. It is difficult to accept that in 2009 more than one out of seven children in Canada lives in poverty. The situation among Aboriginal Canadians is even more dismal, with one out of four children living in poverty. Child care services are another means of ensuring that all Canadians start life on an equal footing. In this regard, the situation in Canada is disparate and child care needs are flagrant, with “supervised” space barely meeting 20 percent of the demand.
The Montreal Congress will offer an opportunity to discuss many of these issues. What role should the federal government play in social policy? How does this role complement the roles of the provinces and territories? How can we ensure that Canadians have all the tools they need to adequately plan for their retirement? How can the federal government promote health? What elements should be included in a Neurodegenerative Disease Strategy designed to reduce the number of Alzheimer and dementia cases in the country and improve the quality of life of persons living with these conditions? Should there be a National Medication Strategy? How should we reconcile the specific needs of provinces in this regard? How can the government increase day care space in order to give parents true choice?
Demographic forecast provide an excellent foundation for planning over the next five to twenty years. But they are not always useful in explaining volatile movement in the economy or share market that are short-term in nature. And they are not cryastal balls that permit us to gaze accurately over a life time of 70-80 years by average individual Canadian life expectancy.
Being parents, educators or community leaders we current older generation or baby boomers need to invest our time and money as priority to prepare our early 21st century school children acquiring proper knowledge, skills and values by utilizing their K-12 (age 6-18) school life teaching chractar education, family and religious values, academic or vocational real life education with varities of courses coping with integrated media, science and technology beside 3 basic Rs of reading, writing and arithmatic. That is how they will become future responsible citizens in a democratic society.
To secure a strong society for our children, parents and neighbours there should strong tie or regular collaborative programs, services or activities taking timewise intervention on settlement, educational, social,cultural, legal, healthcare, economical and family issues among home, school or workplace and the community at both micro and macro level organizations.
I am a great fan of Greg Mortenson and his attention to basic attention to schools for the village girls in Pakistan/Afghanistan. Money spent for health, education and recreation facilities in Canadian Native communities, poor areas and inner city communities is well spent monies. Promote a National Day Care program.
This issue is the elephant in the room. Health care and education strategies need to be discussed. Health care is barely sustainable and we continue to ignore the the issue. There is a misperception it is provincial but the problem must be solved federally. It will eat away our flexibility to educate our children and care for our elderly population. It risks harming our economy, pensions, job growth prospect etc. Families, women and older people are fearful that we will ignore these issues in favour or issues more clearly tied to taxes, war, the economy directly.
Older adults can be a great resource for anticipating and solving problems related to both financial security and health care. Older people do not want to be seen as a dreaded problem for future public cost. Prevention has to start right now by tax incentives for age-friendly communities to be promoted, and tax credits for seniors who participate in fitness programs and who do at least 8 hours of direct volunteer work or caregiving work per week. Older adults can contribute!
As a new father, I appreciate and my wife certainly appreciated the ability for us to share the parental leave EI benefits. However, child care is expensive and spaces limited. If both of us were unemployed, we would both be able to tap into EI benefits at the same time without impacting the benefits of the other. My childcare proposal would be to allow both parents to take a year of leave supported by EI benefits. Currently the time I take as a father is deducted from the time my wife takes as mat leave. If both parents were able to make use of parental leave benefits for a period of one year each within the 1st two years of the child’s life, fathers would have the opportunity to build a strong bond with their child early on and have the same opportunity to build parental competence as the mother does. Competence that would improve their parenting abilities throughout their life and the life of their child. The additional benefit to such a program would be a reduction in the pressure on the child care system and likely a boost to the creation of small businesses in this country. Not to mention the strides for equality in terms of the division of household labour that would also likely result.
Let’s give dad’s and their kids a boost!
Describing health care as the elephant in the room is a huge understatement; society is going to be placing enormous demands on the system.
Aside from financing, simple access is going to be a significant challenge, just making sure the resources needed are available so that need and demand is met. What use is debating who is going to pay for the doctor or nurse, if there simply is not enough professional expertise available? Supply, affordability, demand reduction are all strategies that need to be pursued but from my perspective supply and demand reduction are the two most important areas for the government to focus on. Demand reduction is going to involve the national government incenting municipalities to build healthier and more dense communities so an aging population have places to live…and that does not mean building more care homes.
Its incenting communities so that we have places to live where one can walk to the grocery store from the elevator, where safe urban parks are commonplace, where health and community services are easily accessible.
In other words the era of our suburban asphalt culture is ending. Balconies will replace front lawns. Such a future should not be feared and seen as a negative. The relationship between Mayors and Prime Ministers will become more relevant than ever in delivering safe affordable urban places to live. Provinces will continue to build and operate hospitals and other health delivery systems.
A misplaced piece may be found in past practice. Historically communities were inherently eclectic meaning all ages and socio-economic groups were represented on any given street. This lent itself to opportunities for purpose for aging members as well as a diverse wealth of positive instructive interactions for children. Over time we seem to have put value on property and inadvertently have created sanitized suburbs for some and compartmentalized communities for others. Middle class families vacuum-pack in vehicles instead of walking or biking as a unit to recreation areas or to simply shop.
It could be valuable to revisit urban planning at a national level – to build multiples of small instead of the current large to service sprawl (as in several small medical clinics instead of a few massive ones), to consider how to adapt the architecture of elder alms housing (ex: Brugge) into this century, and to bring decision makers at all levels of government and volunteer service to the table to develop and commit to a comprehensive child care plan in coordination albeit without stifling their autonomy..
The key, really, is a forum for presenting the tenants of a vision after which the expertise of those present is heard and debated. All present need to enter in good will and be prepared to commit to a share of the solution.
When we hear “this is what I’m prepared to do”, without imposing conditions on others, then we know the doing isn’t far behind.
Health care and university education in a small-population country like Canada cannot continue to be administered and mostly financed on a provincial level. The critical mass is no longer there to support these services equally across the country. Accordingly, the federal government must assume these services to maintain the high quality that all Canadians deserve.
Some good ideas for seniors and driving can be found here – http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2010/03/15/drivers-seniors.html
In the Vancouver Sun, March 10, Dan Gardner wrote an article about the “…lack of babies” in Canada today. In it he mentioned that Quebec is a “distinct society” in terms of fertility and child care, far surpassing the rest of Canada.
Why? What is Quebec doing right?
Could it be the fact that in 1997 the Quebec government recognized the challenges facing parents, trying to balance working and caring for children , and, instituted a subsidized child care system as well as broadening maternity leave options and benefits?
Recently, the BC Chamber or Commerce has linked the value of child care with repect to the economy. “The ability to retain working parents in all industry sectors is underpinned by their ability to secure quality child care. A comprehensive Strategic Plan for the Child Care…is critical to staying competitive in today’s global economy”.
It seems obvious that a quality universal child care programme is essential to both Canada’s economic prosperity and future population growth.
Can we afford to do it? or Can we afford not to?
The real Elephant in the room, for Canada is the aging Baby Boomer population and the lack of poverty proof Pensions. The Government is doing nothing to help with NORTEL retirees for example. There is an urgent need to change the BIA legislation to protect existing Pension Plans and give them top priority when a company goes bankrupt.
These pensions and benefits are in fact defered WAGES and if nothing is done taxpayers will become welfare cases and a burden on society, rather than an asset.
This effect persons on LTD and pensioners pensions and health benefits and life insurance that they paid for and now is being stolen .
I propose the Liberals formulate a national dental health care plan as a key element of its policy platform for Canada 150. Today, dental health care is a two tier system with varying degrees of access across Canada. The two tiers are those who have dental insurance plans and those who do not. The latter consist of families in the low income stratum, those who are unemployed and a sizable group of elderly citizens. The numbers in this group are grwoing due to the recent recession and resulting corporate bankruptcies. In addition, even those on dental insurance plans are not covered by cosmetic dentistry expenses such as treatments to repair or restore teeth damaged to varying degress by dental fluorosis.
Dental fluorosis is caused by the ingestion of fluoridated drinking water which is unregulated, uncontrolled, and illegal under Canada’s food and drug acts. People who are diabetics, suffer from renal failure, hypothyroidism, construction workers, police, firefighters, military, athletes, active children, or others who consume high amounts of water (e.g., 10 litres/day) are ingesting high dosages of fluorosilicates that cause the onset of dental fluorosis. Fluoridated drinking water (FDW) is a public health initiative that has gone drastically wrong and yet is being inflicted on about 45-50% of Canadians. Recent studies in Canada, USA, Europe, and even the World Health Organization show that FDW is ineffective in reducing cavities, unsafe for significant portions of the population, uneconomic in operating and capital costs relative to the costs of treating dental fluorosis and other adverse health effects for humans and other life forms (e.g., fish, livestock, pets, zoo animals), and unethical as it is a mass medication done without informed consent and without due regard for the precautionary principle of modern medical practice (i.e., first do no harm).
I presented on March 1 a preliminary estimate of the costs over 10 years of FDW in Toronto. These costs, which included fluoridation operating and capital costs, a lead pipe replacement program (experiments show fluorosilicates cause elevated leaching of lead from drinking water distribution systems) , and the cost of treating dental fluorosis in 10-12% of children from 8 to 15 years old. The total estimated cocsts ranged from $499.7 million to $839.5 million which could be saved were the City to stop fluoridating our drinking water.
B.C., where less than 3% of the population has access to FDW, has a general dental insurance plan that augments those available from large employers. It could serve as a starting point in the design and implementation of a national dental insurance plan to fill the gaps in existing private serctor coverage. The Liberal Party introduced under Paul Martin Sr the federal-provincial health insurance plan, By filling this gap in dental health care, the Party would being doing the right thing in improving the quality of life of all Canadians. This would further strengthen its stature and appeal as a visionary, caring and compassionate political force for good.
On a related point of public policy, the Party should call for Health Canada to abandon its current campaign to promote and coordinate the greater uptake of the damaging FDW practices by provincial, territorial and municipal governments. It should also make ineligible any cost-sharing of FDW equipment in present or future infrastructure projects. In the realm of foreign policy, the next Liberal government should align itself with the European Union and member states that eschew FDW practices and the international trade in foods and beverages that use FDW, regardless of country of origin.
Respectfully, Gerry Cooper Public Policy Advisor, People for Safe Drinking Water
I second that! The role of Dad’s in a child’s life is not publicly recognized enough. As a graduate student looking forward to a career of my dreams, I often experience some anxiety about having kids even though my husband and I have been married five years and I rather like kids. My worry is that in taking on kids I will at the same time be disproportionately taking on a battle with the almost unconscious thought patterns that make women the primary parent in the early years, as I interact with friends and colleagues and even my husband in the negotiation of parenting. Perhaps men have converse fears or inhibitions about taking on more direct responsibility for early childcare? We’re turning a corner on this as a society, but at the same time I’m all for whatever public policy increases public recognition of the value of fathers in early childcare.
The comments made so far are all well and good, but the discussion also needs to encompass ideas on funding. For several reasons, I believe that income tax rates on the wealthy should be increased, and dramatically increased for the very wealthy.
(1) The growing gap between rich and poor is widely recognized. It is harmful to society, it is morally indefensible, and it should be reversed.
(2) Taxes should be raised according to the individual’s ability to pay. For example, there are 180,000 Canadians earning more than $250,000. They can and should provide billions more in tax revenue.
(3) Income tax is a much fairer way to raise revenue than consumption tax, like the GST, which even the poorest must pay.
(4) People will naturally attempt to minimize their taxes by contributiing the maximum to RRSPs, RESPs, charities. This should be encouraged as they are all strategies that help to solve personal as well as national challenges. However, everything should be done to try to eliminate tax “loopholes” like trusts and offshore bank accounts.
(5) It is a politically sound strategy. Even if the wealthiest citizens all voted against a party espousing such tax increases, I doubt it would make much difference to the outcome of an election. Besides, it might persuade some traditional NDP supporters in ridings where their party never stands a chance, to cast their votes for the Liberals where their votes might actually result in a socially progressive policy.
I am surprised that no one has yet realized that the only solution to the coming dangerous demographic crisis is promoting bigger, stronger families. Still, we only read about economical and financial solutions. It is like calling the plumber to fix an electrical problem.
We need to promote Equal Parenting (Bill C-422) as soon as possible as it is the way that so many other countries and states (U.S.) have chosen to successfully counterweight the coming demographic disaster we will all face.
In 10-15 years, there will not be enough workers to finance the huge, costly elephant we call the “Government” and the health system will collapse on itself for lack of funds. It is a no-brainer. Also, I see that the party is fighting over issues that leave me dead cold. It is time that we adress the issues that are close to the peoples hearts in order to regain popularity. “Old style” politics are over.
Family Law Reform
A nation is only as its families. The inequities of the Divorce Act are well known and are far-reaching. Every adult Canadian has a close friend or family member who has experienced divorce/separation. Aside from the emotional pain, Canada suffers an estimated social cost of $ 12-14 billion annually in terms of wealth destruction, government assistance, dysfunctional families, and consequential social problems reverberating in the Justice system.
Australia recognized a decade ago that it was destroying its social fabric and national vigour via a flawed public policy expressed in family law. While Canada chose not to implement its own recommendations in the 1998 “For the Sake of the Children” report, Australia picked up these ideas and implemented sweeping family law reforms predicated on the notion that the family is the bedrock of any society and that children deserve maximal continuity of relationship with both parents regardless of marital status.
Australian reforms were based on the concept of a state responsible for nurturing families during all phases of a relationship, promoting shared parenting, and helping rather than punishing families during stressful transitions like divorce/separation. The recent evaluation reports of their reforms showed 80% of Australians support these reforms, an increase of 3 % from the passage of the reforms 5 years ago.
Repeated polls show that 80% of Canadians likewise favour these reforms- a figure that is relatively constant across gender, age, region, or political party affiliation. The majority of MPs in all parties support these reforms, just as they did a decade earlier. Mr. Ignatieff is on record as supporting these reforms. Both the Conservative and Green parties are on record as supporting these reforms. Yet parliament has not acted.
The Liberals have a Human Rights champion at the helm. Let us take up the challenge to chide other parties for inaction on this issue, and let us publicly commit to undertake family law reforms as the top social priority when in power.
Today’s comment will be short and if it gets allowed ‘in’ I will continue.I consider myself to be a frontline liberal thinker and doer influenced by spending time with Ivan Illich before he wrote Medical Nemises ..read/view my other ’stuff” later if interested.
For today I offer what I wrote for my daughter when she was in grade eight:
We humans are problem solvers
We reach the door of wisdom
When we learn to solve
The right problem at the right time.”
Upon entering university I offered Avalyne the next instalment:
“Knowledge and Wisdom are mere amusements of the mind until and unless we can use them to arrive at our chosen destination.”
It is my studied opinion that one thing that needs to be on Canada’s agenda is to figure out how we can embrace creating a culture of health rather than the emphasis on more and more healthcare….which is not sustainable.
Wayne … More detailed later:-))
Research on the social determinants of health is clear. However, what is lacking is an integrated strategy reflected in policy to improve outcomes for Canadians. We have dropped the ball on poverty (including child poverty), housing, basic living income, early learning … , hence, the expected results of worse population health than those countries that have progressed well ahead of Canada. We would rather reduce wait times for cardiac treatments and spend millions/billions in healthcare rather than addressing the root causes of poor health. There is a huge opportunity to carve out a new and innovative platform position. Too bad that it is not more popular to solve long term problems. But in reality we face a future of overwhelming health care costs that may undermine prosperity.
As a family person I am really concerned about the future Families of Canada strong Families create strong community, strong community create strong country, from my observation almost more than 50% of Canadian family either separated or divorced their kids go through tough time the pain and frustration of separation and divorce is not an easy and simple issue. We cannot build strong country while families foundations shaken by separation and divorce. We must give attention for families today, if we really planning to build great Canada. My understanding is may be the cause of all this issues:
1: Financial stress
2: Domestic abuse,
3: drug and alcohol (substance abuse)
4: cultural Revolution
5: fear and depression
6: changing the traditional family law,
7: Idolatry
may one or more of the above case contributor of this family crises the Nation must do something we have resources, we have research, we know the crises we must act to save marriage than give easy access for separation and divorce marriage must be life time commitment all new couples they must understand the traditional marriage. Marriage is not a contract; it is a lifetime commitment, so education to new couples is very important. The government must prepare some kind of rules and regulations for new couples before they get married. Neglecting this issue today means, we punishing the future young generation of Canada, who will raised in broken home.
Gi Haile
From Winnipeg
TIME FOR HEALING! Let Canda be the home of Global Family.
Canada is a country which millions of peoples live together in one government general rule of law and respect. The government and public institution, Canada=s First Nations people accept and sign treaty with European many years ago, one time they live in harmony, suddenly the conflict between Native American and European Canadians are killed or dispersed or rotted out from their land they grew up, from the land they invest all their resources, from the land where they produce their own food and raised their children, and take more lands from the Natives and kept it for new settlers and future non native settlers. This displacement and dispositions= of Native communities and the residential school system, create the Aboriginal family not to practice their own traditional healing ceremony for many years. Government and the catholic churches oppose this traditional healing ceremony for centuries. The Aboriginal people in the beginning they were fully autonomous, the growth of Immigration from British and France to North America creates the Idea of land ownership and controlling more land by taking from Aboriginal people by force. The effects of this dehumanization process have to stop, the Europeans or non Europeans settlers must respect other tradition and culture since European and Native Canadians also culturally diverse people in the beginning. The government and the churches= institutions who dehumanize the Native American Aboriginal people have no solution for today=s problem. Their grand fathers plant the seed of hate that still produce the fruit of hate, hate the enemy of all human kind this must stop.
The Native American Aboriginal communities are diverse and unique, they should practice their own traditional way of healing, healing is not bad, even for the government and health Institution less burden and cost saving for the community. If Abusive and slavery are continued the way it operates in the past the society becomes in the arm conflict or starts guerilla warfare. We are living in civilized society, and it is time to change our thinking and our deed to run our life in positive direction. All Native and Non Native Canadians must value life and the sanctity of all life.
Time has come now to North American natives=, to explore and search their culture, tradition and costume in a post modern era, without changing the basic principles of good traditional value and practice their code of Ethics.
This is the most important path for all Aboriginal and all humanity. All systems of the government and public institutions must serve all diverse community equally without discrimination, we all need to change the way we thinking,
Future Canada The home of the whole World lets prepare ourself to welcome others and build great Global Family.
Courage to speak truth to voters. It seems that comments about health always skirt the fundamental issues of education and prevention. I want our leaders to have the courage to tell Canadians point blank that much of the solution is in their hands. Lifestyle factors are the biggest influences. There must be a national strategy that is more than words. If we continue to look for ways to increase the services required without addressing the need to raise our children with good health habits and to change our own Canada will never have the resources required. I want leaders who will tell voters pointblank that our current rates of obesity and inactivity make it impossible to solve the health resource crises. It is incredible to me that there is no mandatory physical activity in every school day for every grade. Etc.