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| Special Diet Allowance Changes | | | Source: Ministry of Community and Social Services (www.mcss.gov.on.ca) Special Diet Allowance Changes The Special Diet Allowance helps social assistance recipients who have eligible medical conditions receive the special diets they need to help manage their conditions. The Special Diet Allowance will change on April 1, 2011 to make the program more accountable and comply with a Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario decision.Changes include - Revising the list of eligible medical conditions. Some medical conditions will receive an increased allowance, other conditions will see a decrease. Also, medical conditions that the Special Diets Expert Review Committee found to not require a special diet that involves additional costs will be removed. This means some people will stop getting an allowance.
- Requiring recipients to consent to the release of relevant medical information to support their application, and
- Putting stronger tracking methods in place to improve accountability.
The Special Diet Allowance is one of the many social assistance benefits that will be considered in the context of Ontario’s social assistance review. What this means to recipients To be considered for the revised Special Diet Allowance, you will need to submit a new application form confirming you have an eligible medical condition. You need to do this even if you are currently receiving a Special Diet Allowance.You can submit a new application at any time. However, if you currently receive a Special Diet Allowance, you should submit your application for an eligible medical condition by July 31, 2011 to avoid disruption to your Special Diet Allowance payments.Current Special Diet Allowance recipients will be mailed a new application form and instructions for applying in February 2011. Forms are also available from local Ontario Works and Ontario Disability Support Program offices.Applicants will need to sign the consent statement on the application form to allow the release of medical information related to their application.Previous versions of the Special Diet Allowance application will not be accepted after March 31, 2011. | | |
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