Financial Assistance change to benefit pensioners
The Government has tabled legislation to help seniors maintain financial assistance support while bolstering mental health options for clients
Tinée Furbert, the Minister of Youth, Social Development and Seniors, said that the Financial Assistance Amendment Regulations 2025 would increase the number of treatment sessions available to Department of Financial Assistance clients.
The amendments would also help to prevent seniors from losing out on financial assistance because of pension increases.
Speaking in the House of Assembly today, Ms Furbert said: “There have been occurrences of DFA awarding proportional reductions in financial assistance awards received by clients who are seniors/pensioners because of the recent periods of pension increases.
“In practice, this means when DFA conducts a ‘means test’ on these seniors/pensioners, their pension income that exceeds the legislative threshold of $500 per calendar month must be included as part of the calculation as qualifying household income.
“This leads to a reduced financial assistance award received by the senior or pensioner on the basis that their household income is being offset by a corresponding decrease.
“As a result, seniors/pensioners are now being impacted by receiving proportional reductions to their awards or unable to fulfil the eligibility requirements to receive financial assistance.”
Ms Furbert said that the amendments would address the issue by increasing the “excluded income” threshold from $500 per month to $800 per month.
“This proposed amendment would align with the maximum threshold for pensions by the year 2030,” she said.
Ms Furbert added that there are 376 pensioners who will be affected by the change, which will cost the department an estimated $112,920 a month.
She said that the amendments would also increase the number of mental health outpatient treatments that financial assistance clients can receive.
While the legislation allows eligible clients to receive six sessions of outpatient treatments annually at a maximum cost of $840 per year, Ms Furbert said the maximum number of sessions was too limited.
Under the amendments, clients could receive up to 24 mental health sessions per year at a cost of $840 per month.
“We have taken a position to make this amendment based on best standard practice of access to mental health services which takes into consideration frequency, utilisation, cost, need and access,” the minister said.
“We have collected data on the private insurers’ schedule of benefits for mental health services, and there is much variation across private insurers in mental health support, particularly in Bermuda.
“What we all can agree on is that mental health treatment services are needed to provide equitable access to those persons on financial assistance who may be vulnerable, disadvantaged, on a low income and have adverse childhood experiences or experienced stressful or traumatic events.”
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