OCSA's 2025 Pre-Budget Recommendations

The Care That’s Needed – The Care That’s Wanted

Investing in home and community care to expand access to care and build a strong workforce 

The need for robust home and community care services is growing, driven by:

Aging population

Increasing demand for home and community-based support

Caregiver burnout

Investing in home care and community support services and the organizations who deliver them is essential not only for the well-being of individuals but also for the sustainability and effectiveness of Ontario’s healthcare system.

What is the Pre-Budget Consultation Process?

Each year, in advance of the release of the provincial budget in the spring, government solicits feedback from the public, business owners, and communities about what they would like to see prioritized in the budget. This page provides the highlights from OCSA's 2025 Pre-Budget consultation submission, which summarizes the urgent need for more funding for Ontario’s home and community care sector. Thank you for downloading the report and helping us spread the word. Find out how you can get involved.

2025 Pre-Budget Submission

OCSA recommendations for Budget 2025

Increase access to services and transform service delivery by increasing funding by at least 5%

$241 million

This would allow home and community care providers to:

  • Build access to integrated wrap around care
  • Prioritize investments where they are needed locally
  • Transform service delivery
  • Support volunteers
  • Modernize digital infrastructure
  • Build organizational leadership

Invest in a 3% compensation increase for the home and community care workforce as part of a broader, community health-based strategy

$144 million

Implementing a compensation retention strategy over the next 4 years would:

  • Close the wage gap between community and hospital workers
  • Retain 1 in 5 PSWs who would otherwise have left the sector
  • Create an additional 23.5 million care hours for Ontarians
  • Prevent long-term care admissions
  • Help drive down hospital alternative level of care rates

These two investments would help address key challenges facing home and community care.

TOTAL ASK

$385 million

This would lead to:

  • Better access to services
  • A stronger health workforce
  • More efficient, digitally enabled organizations
  • Health System Transformation

By investing $385 million, the province will address key challenges facing home and community care today: inconsistent access to services, a staffing and volunteer crisis, and fragmented or lack of digital connectivity.

THE NEED IS GROWING.

Ontarians need better access to more integrated services to live well in their homes and communities. Population growth will significantly increase the demand for home and community care services as more seniors require support to live independently and manage their health needs.


Demand for wrap around home and community care has spiked this year. Waitlists for all types of Community Support Services, including those delivered by volunteers, have grown.


The situation is made worse by the challenge of recruiting and retaining volunteers. 70% of the care delivered in the community is delivered by unpaid caregivers or volunteers. In 2024, volunteers delivered over three million hours of care.

The numbers you need to know

650,000

Projected increase of Ontario's 65+ population by 2029

12.1%

Growth in homecare demand in 2024-25

8x

Increase in size of waitlists this year at some Community Support Service organizations

6800

Additional Personal Support Workers needed by 2028 just to maintain current service levels

Beyond simply expanding existing services across the province, we must also transform how care is delivered. To enable seniors and people with disabilities to age well at home, a comprehensive suite of services that wrap around a client is essential.


Client Experience:

Restoring Independence for Mrs. Thompson

Mrs. Thompson, an 82-year-old widow, struggled with daily tasks after a hip fracture. Her daughter, concerned about her mother's ability to live alone, sought help to keep her at home.

  • Find out how Wrap Around Home and Community Care Services help (Click to Read)

    • Personal Care: A support worker visits daily to help with bathing, dressing and grooming, restoring her confidence.
    • Household Assistance: A homemaker handles housekeeping and meal prep twice a week, creating a safer living environment.
    • Home Care: Nurse visits and physiotherapy sessions improve her mobility and recovery.
    • Transportation: Accessible transport takes her to medical appointments, Adult Day programs and exercise classes, addressing her clinical requirements, maintaining physical activity and reducing social isolation.
    • Volunteer Visiting: Trained volunteers visit to provide companionship and personal assistance. 

    These services, coordinated through a community-based system navigator working with a home care care coordinator, enable Mrs. Thompson to regain independence and stay in the home she loves. This person-centred approach ensures care is tailored to her personal requirements and specific health needs.

Ontario’s entire community health sector is facing a staffing crisis caused by the growing wage gap. Closing the gap would retain 1 in 5 PSWs who would otherwise have left the sector, resulting in over 23.5 million additional yearly care hours for vulnerable Ontarians.

 The recommendations outlined in the OCSA 2025 Pre-Budget Submission are essential to addressing the growing needs of our aging, diverse population and individuals with physical disabilities, as well as stabilizing our broader healthcare system.

Give Ontarians The Care That's Needed - The Care That's Wanted

How to Get Involved

Send a letter or email to your MPP

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We need action now! #HomeandCommunityCare waitlists are growing - some increased 8x this year. I support @OCSAtweets recommendations to @ONGov to invest $385 million in 2025 so that not-for-profit service providers can continue to give Ontarians the #CareThatsNeeded

 www.ocsa.on.ca/2025-pre-budget-recommendations

 

#ONhealth 


Expand access now. Every year, 5.7% of LTC admissions could've been avoided with better access to #HomeandCommunityCare. Let's close the wage gap for PSWs in the sector and create more hours of the #CareThatsNeeded for Ontarians.  www.ocsa.on.ca/2025-pre-budget-recommendations

 

#ONhealth 

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