The B.C. government is changing the rate seniors will pay for residential care. (CBC)

The B.C. government is changing the rates many seniors pay for residential care, dropping the prices for the lowest-income clients and raising them for the rest.

Twenty-five per cent of nursing home residents with the lowest incomes will see their rates drop by up to $540 a year, but the other 75 per cent will pay more when the new rates start in the new year, according to Health Services Minister Kevin Falcon.

The rate changes for publicly supported facilities were necessary to reduce the burden on low-income seniors and support ongoing improvements to the residential care system, Falcon said.

"It will introduce a new equitable rate structure so a client's income determines what they pay for residential care. It's fair and it's the right thing to do," Falcon said.

The rate increases will be phased in over two years to reduce the impact on clients and are expected to generate around $53.7 million in additional revenue.

From $894 per month

Under the new system, seniors in government-supported residential care will pay up to 80 per cent of their income toward their room and board costs, provided they are left with at least $275 a month to cover personal expenses — which gives them the highest retained income in the country, Falcon said.

The new rates will range from $894 a month to a maximum of $2,932, compared with rates for private facilities that are usually in the $4,000 to $5,000 a month range, Falcon said.

Hardship provisions are available for all clients who are unable to pay, and no one who needs residential care services will be turned away, he said.

The fees fund only a portion of the cost of operating a residential-care bed, which is estimated to be $6,000 a month, Falcon said. More than 90 per cent of all residential-care clients receive a government subsidy toward their room and board costs.

Support from operators

The changes to the rate structure received cautious support from Ed Helfrich, CEO of the Care Providers Association of B.C., which lobbies the government on behalf of 130 operators of residential care homes for seniors.

Helfrich said his association's support hinges on Falcon's promise the $53 million in increased revenue will go directly back into residential care to restore services for seniors, and not into health authorities' general operating revenue.

"Within the residential sector, we had a potential shortfall of $81 million to bring them up to an appropriate staffing level throughout the province," Helfrich said.

More than 26,000 British Columbians receive 24-hour nursing care, as well as room, board and recreational programs, in the province's residential care homes, Falcon said.