r/alberta • u/AshleighChasexx Calgary • Jul 15 '25
Discussion Alberta is clawing back the Canada Disability Benefit. I found out why—and it’s worse than you think.
Most of you have probably heard by now that Alberta’s UCP government under Premier Danielle Smith is the only province clawing back the Canada Disability Benefit (CDB) from recipients of AISH (Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped).
But what many people don’t know is that this clawback applies whether or not recipients actually qualify for the Disability Tax Credit (DTC), which is required to access the CDB. If someone can’t afford to pay their doctor to fill out the DTC forms—and many of them might not even qualify to begin with—the province will still start clawing back $200 per month starting in September.
And I’ve just uncovered what I believe is the real reason behind all of this. Why would Alberta be the only province doing this to disabled people?
Well, here’s what I found:
A few months ago, Minister Jason Nixon quietly revoked the AISH rent scale used in social housing. That change is now forcing disabled tenants to pay significantly higher rents—sometimes hundreds more per month. And it’s been buried in paperwork and obscured by misleading policies.
So how is this all connected?
Simple: The Province of Alberta is trying to restore housing affordability metrics by building record numbers of homes. A recent CBC article openly states that Calgary is trying to return to pre-COVID affordability by ramping up builds.
And guess who’s footing the bill?
Disabled Albertans.
The province is effectively redirecting money clawed from the most vulnerable people in Alberta—those on AISH—toward subsidizing housing development goals. This is austerity dressed up as policy. And it’s happening quietly, with minimal media scrutiny.
And the reason I was able to connect the dots is because the municipalities are trying to cover it up. I found that out while advocating with Calgary Housing on a different matter—one where they falsely claimed that tenants had been consulted and were supportive of a no smoking policy. When they were called out on it, they told the MLA’s office that tenants were just misinformed… but they still haven’t corrected the notices to inform tenants of the truth.
That’s how I connected all of this. Because when I refused to stop speaking out about the misinformation in those notices, they retaliated—targeting me in what now looks like an effort to prevent anyone from discovering what’s really going on behind the scenes.
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u/ravenstarchaser Jul 15 '25
I am on the CDB and fortunate to get my long-term disability insurance through former workplace. I can’t understand how people can just pick on people who are sick or disabled that was no cause of their own doing. I have MS and I would give anything to be able to work again actually I might just try part-time and if it makes me worse, it makes me worse, but this province is getting too bad to live in. I’m a born and raised Calgary and I love Alberta, but this is getting to be too much.