P.E.I. spends extra $1.1M on social assistance, disability support
More cases and higher average cost per case puts province in red
Cost overruns of more than $1-million in P.E.I.'s social assistance and disability support programs in the 2014-15 fiscal year are being attributed to a higher number of cases.
-
P.E.I. mother says province discriminating against mentally ill daughter
- $100K in social-assistance writeoffs approved by province
- Disability support budget down, Opposition charges
- P.E.I. social assistance food allowance increased
The P.E.I. cabinet recently approved a special warrant of $1,119,000 to cover the shortfall. Special warrants are issued when a department spends more money than was budgeted.
"We saw an increase in our caseload and our average cost per case in both the social assistance and the DSP," explained Lane Pineau, the director of finance with the Department of Family and Human Services.
64 more people needed social assistance and disability support for a caseload of 5,058 Islanders in 2014-15, but Pineau said some of the cases were more complex and therefore cost more.
More than $617,000 of the overspending will be offset by an increase in revenue for provincial housing programs, he added.
With files from Angela Walker