Consultation Paper on Assisted Living in British Columbia

Abstract

In conjunction with a volunteer project committee of experts and volunteers experienced with assisted-living issues, the British Columbia Law Institute and its division the Canadian Centre for Elder Law have developed this consultation paper covering a broad range of assisted-living issues.The consultation paper is published in conjunction with the Assisted Living BC Project. This BCLI/CCEL joint project, which began in 2009, is designed to review the legislative framework for assisted living in British Columbia and identify changes to the framework that would be beneficial as assisted living continues to develop in this province. The project focusses on the Community Care and Assisted Living Act, the principal act that regulates assisted living in British Columbia, but touches on other applicable legislation and policy. The project was undertaken following the publication of Assisted Living: Past, Present and Future Legal Trends in Canada, a research study by CCEL that examined and compared the legal and regulatory frameworks for assisted living and its equivalents across Canada. That study pointed to various gaps and areas of uncertainty that suggested a law-reform project focussing on assisted living in British Columbia would be worthwhile.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 residents' bill of rights); privacy; health and safety; employment and labor relations; dispute resolution; and different regulatory approaches that could be employed.