Trudeau announces COVID-19-related direct financial support for seniors aged 65 and over | Page 3 | General financial discussion | Discussion forum

mmlt said
I would rather have seen some tax free access to rsps or rifs as was the rumour in early days.

I wouldn't.

I'm sure CARP would love it if the government would let well-off seniors draw $5,000 or $10,000 out of their RRIF or RRSP tax free. That would cost the government way more in lost taxes than giving them a one-time $300.

Norman1 said
Seniors are affected on their expenses side.

For example, pharmacies are now refusing to issue renewals for more than a one-month supply of medication, even for drugs that are not short in supply. Before, one could get a six-month supply. Now, they need to pay 6X prescription fees and make a trip every month instead of every six months.

Another example are those free community tax preparation clinics that are now shutdown. May need to pay a tax preparer to do their 2019 tax return.

Good luck if they were using grocery store delivery. Used to be hours for an order to be ready. Now, it is days or over a week! Probably have to hire someone now to get their groceries. Before the pandemic, some services were charging $25/hour to shop for groceries.

Seniors are to receive a one time $300 to $500. They are not going to receive $2,000 per month until September.  

Right on.

Although Costco BC continues to fill 90 days.

I had to do my MIL income tax. She threw out all of her old records, did not change her address so no OAS or CPP Tslips, and has no access to CRA My Account. She is 94 half blind and deaf. So any phone communication and relay to us would have been full of inaccuracies. A huge cost if we had to turn it over to an accountant.

We must also stress about pensioners with very low income that have to pay rent for living accommodations.

And those that have experienced serious long and short damage to their pensions, that have high amounts in the stock market.

And also those Defined Pension benefits that are now underfunded as the company has dissolved due to insolvency. These pensioners now have a much reduced income and Trudeau has turned his back to assist in changing laws or to implement federal rules to maintain pensions to be funded at 100% or more.

While he might be doing a good job right now due to his support to big business and lack of support to retirees and pensioners, I would never vote for a sarcastic and disrespectful (to specific groups) for Prime Minister.

Alexandra said
I am not 100% sure, but it seems to me that I read even kids as young as 15, if they had a job (part time at McDonalds or the local grocery store etc?) , can qualify for the $2K per month or at least some of that. Parents now are receiving $800 per month per child .....and I think that is a good thing, but I disagree with kids who had a part-time job and quit in order to receive support payments from the government on a personal level. I know of one small business here where all of the owners are working their butts off to keep their business going because the students they hired opted to not keep their employment with them. Of course it was the parents who didn't want their kids to have any possibility of being exposed to Covid 19 at work. I don't blame them, but there are many government employees here in BC, working from home earning say $150K in total. I don't believe the kids should be topping up that income.

Your thoughts?  

Yes, it should be based on lost income that finances the household, not a dependant that makes money for themselves on the side. But I suppose anyone could argue that the dependant supports the household too. Perhaps that dependant is not just spending their paycheque on entertainment and non-essential “stuff”.

Alexandra said
I am not 100% sure, but it seems to me that I read even kids as young as 15, if they had a job (part time at McDonalds or the local grocery store etc?) , can qualify for the $2K per month or at least some of that. Parents now are receiving $800 per month per child .....and I think that is a good thing, but I disagree with kids who had a part-time job and quit in order to receive support payments from the government on a personal level. I know of one small business here where all of the owners are working their butts off to keep their business going because the students they hired opted to not keep their employment with them. Of course it was the parents who didn't want their kids to have any possibility of being exposed to Covid 19 at work. …

Yes, a 15 year old can qualify. He or she would need to earn at least $5,000 of certain kinds of income in 2019 or in the last 12 months to qualify for the CERB.

If the person quit voluntarily, then the person is specifically disqualified by subsection 6(2) of the legislation.

savemoresaveoften said

Norman1 said
Seniors are affected on their expenses side.

For example, pharmacies are now refusing to issue renewals for more than a one-month supply of medication, even for drugs that are not short in supply. Before, one could get a six-month supply. Now, they need to pay 6X prescription fees and make a trip every month instead of every six months.
 

Seniors does not pay for prescription fee nor drugs and most pharmacies waives the $2 too is my understanding. So 1 month vs 3 month not relevant to them is my thought.
If anything it hurts those that are NOT seniors and now force to pay extra $$ due to monthly refills.

My parents benefit from the extra cash being handed out but I still cant agree its the morally correct subsidy. Waiving mandatory RRIF withdrawal or not charge tax up to $x amount on RRSP withdrawal is more accountable. I dont think one can really argue Trudeau's "real intentions"....  

$2 ??? Are you on a plan??
London Drugs in the West charges $10.00
Keep in mind a lot of retirees no longer have plans which is another hard ship.
So 5 prescriptions per 90 days is $50
And 5 prescriptions per 30 days is $50 plus and extra $100 for 90 days

See this dispensing fee list.

Some are buying at 6 and 12 months.

I have questioned Costco many times as why they stick to only 90 days and why won't they fill if I have too many left as per their tally. I have no plan, I have no government subsidy for prescriptions, I have been taking the same drugs for years, none expire quickly, none are addictive narcotics or need refrigeration. They are inconsiderate to not allow filling of two prescriptions ie. one with 7 days left and another with 18 days left. We shop at Costco once a month and an extra trip is a 45 minute drive each way.

Dispensing fees are a huge profit, much more than what the real cost is. Don't be fooled by what they say as many companies have in store dispensing machines and some are centrally filled by machines off site.

GICinvestor said

$2 ??? Are you on a plan??
London Drugs in the West charges $10.00
Keep in mind a lot of retirees no longer have plans which is another hard ship.
So 5 prescriptions per 90 days is $50
And 5 prescriptions per 30 days is $50 plus and extra $100 for 90 days
 

Dont know which province you are in, but in Ontario seniors either pay $2 or $6.11 depends on their income. Most pharmacies waives the $2 so its either $0 or $4.11. Again this is for seniors which is all we are talking about here. Regular fee for non seniors whether its $10 or $14.99 is irrelevant.

If you are senior, live in Ontario and currently pays $10 prescription fee, you should know better and challenge your pharmacy...

savemoresaveoften said

GICinvestor said

$2 ??? Are you on a plan??
London Drugs in the West charges $10.00
Keep in mind a lot of retirees no longer have plans which is another hard ship.
So 5 prescriptions per 90 days is $50
And 5 prescriptions per 30 days is $50 plus and extra $100 for 90 days
 

Dont know which province you are in, but in Ontario seniors either pay $2 or $6.11 depends on their income. Most pharmacies waives the $2 so its either $0 or $4.11. Again this is for seniors which is all we are talking about here. Regular fee for non seniors whether its $10 or $14.99 is irrelevant.

If you are senior, live in Ontario and currently pays $10 prescription fee, you should know better and challenge your pharmacy...  

I guess every province has their bonuses. We do not have any Provincial prescription assistance in BC unless you are in a very low income bracket and then the bonus is for all in that lower tax bracket. There is no cost reduction just because you are a senior for prescriptions.

pwm said
At Walmart Pharmacy where we go there's only one amount on the bill. "Patient pays". If there's a fee it must be included in the price. When I make my claim, I skip that field on the online form so I have no way of knowing if I'm paying any fee or not.

Have another look at the pharmacy receipt that shows your name and the DIN that identifies the drug dispensed. The "Patient Pays" amount is just the net amount for the cashier to collect. There should be other amounts shown.

Something like "Cost" is the cost of the drug. "Fee" is the dispensing fee. There will also be a third amount for a drug plan reimbursement.

You may be surprised how much the dispensing fee is compared to the drug cost. A while back, one pharmacy charged me $10.99 to dispense 60 days supply of a drug that cost $2!

That's why some drug plans stopped covering 100% of the dispensing fee and cap dispensing fee reimbursement around $5 to get patients to shop around. Otherwise, people will be lazy and have their prescriptions filled at some small pharmacy near the doctor's office that charges $14.99 each to dispense. Why make the trip to a pharmacy like Costco, that charges $3.89 to count the same pills, when someone else is paying?

Thanks, pwm.

I just learned something: Pharmacies in Manitoba do not have an obligation to disclose dispensing fee separately as they do in other provinces!

See University of Manitoba drug plan document Prescription Drug Claims and Dispensing Fees.

In 2015, Walmart charged $9.71. So, you likely are paying a $10 dispensing fee for $7.35 of drug.

I found the following at Questions and Answers on the Canada Emergency Response Benefit:

Self-employed and Independent Workers

Are self-employed small business owners eligible for the CERB?
Yes provided they meet the eligibility criteria including that they stopped working due to COVID-19 and do not earn more than $1000 in a period of at least 14 consecutive days in the first benefit period and for the entire four-week benefit period of any subsequent claim.

Small Business owners can receive income from their business in different ways, including as salary, business income or dividends. In determining their eligibility for the Canada Emergency Response Benefit:

• Owners who take a salary from their business should consider their pre-tax salary;
• Owners who rely on business income should consider their net pre-tax income (gross income less expenses);
• Owners who rely on dividend income should consider this as self-employment income provided it comes from non–eligible dividends (generally, those paid out of corporate income taxed at the small business rate).