BCLI Consultation Paper on Community Assisted Living in British Columbia

The British Columbia Law Institute and the Canadian Centre for Elder Law are seeking responses to their Assisted Living BC Project Committee's Consultation Paper on Assisted Living in British Columbia, published in November, 2012.

In British Columbia, assisted living residences are registered under the Community Care and Assisted Living Act. Residents in assisted living residences have substantial autonomy, but receive hospitality and a limited number of other services. Assisted living is in between independent living on the one hand, and long-term care on the other.

The Assisted Living BC Project Committee is undertaking a broad and in-depth study. As set out in the paper:

The Assisted Living BC Project examines the legal framework for assisted living from various perspectives: the nature and legal definition of assisted living, housing and tenancy issues, consumer rights (including the relative merits of having a “resident’s Bill Of Rights”), privacy, health and safety, employment and labour relations, dispute resolution, and different regulatory approaches that could be employed. The volunteer Project Committee held 30 meetings to review these issues and developed a series of tentative recommendations in each of these areas. Not every tentative recommendation is unanimous, but each represents the view of at least a majority of the members of the Project Committee. 

This consultation paper summarizes the matters reviewed by the Project Committee and the thinking behind the tentative recommendations. The tentative recommendations have Not been formally adopted by BCLI/CCEL’s directors and are open to change in light of the responses to the consultation paper. Comment and input on the tentative recommendations is sought from all perspectives, including those of assisted living residents and their family members, operators of assisted living facilities, medical, nursing and legal practitioners working with assisted living residents, legal and policy specialists, and members of the public.

You may provide comments by February 28, 2013, as follows:

By mail:

British Columbia Law Institute

321 Allard Hall, Faculty of Law UBC

1822 East Mall, UBC

Vancouver, BC

V6T 1Z1

Attention:Elizabeth Pinsent

By fax: 604 822 0144

By e-­mail: albc@bcli.org

A booklet for responses is available online here.