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New federal Canada Disability Benefit passes third reading, moves to Senate

A new Canada Disability Benefit (CDB) is one step closer to reality after legislation passed the House of Commons in Ottawa.

Carla Qualtrough, the federal Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, said Bill C-22 passed third reading and is headed to the Senate for consdieration.

“With Bill C-22, we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to create a new benefit that will lift many working-age Canadians with disabilities out of poverty,” said Qualtrough. “I’m looking forward to working with my colleagues in the Senate to keep the momentum up. In Canada, no person with a disability should live in poverty.”

People with disabilities are twice as likely to live in poverty and have trouble making ends meet, according to the federal government.

According to the most recent Canadian Survey on Disability (2017), nearly 917,000 (23 per cent) pf working-age Canadians with disabilities live in poverty. Persons with severe disabilities (28 per cent) and very severe disabilities (34 per cent) are particularly vulnerable and experience a high rate of poverty.

The same survey found that Canadians with disabilities — including women, men, LGBTQ2 people, racialized people and Indigenous people — are more likely to be financially insecure than other Canadians.

It also found that 59 per cent of Canadians with disabilities aged 25 to 64 have gainful employment, compared to 80 per cent of Canadians without disabilities; and
Canadians with disabilities aged 25 to 64 earn less than Canadians without disabilities (12 per cent less for Canadians with milder disabilities and 51 per cent less for Canadians with more severe disabilities).