The New BC Disability Funding Model for Children and Youth with Support Needs

As most parents and families have heard, the government made a huge announcement regarding Autism Funding and introduced a new funding model on February 10th, 2026. I noticed my social media blowing up; some disability groups were excited about the announcement, while the autism community in particular, was quite upset about the move away from autism funding.

There is a long history to advocating in the autism community to get supports for autistic children. Back in 2002, the government introduced autism funding in BC following the Auton Decision, a landmark lawsuit. And then in 2021/2022 the government announced the removal of autism funding and switch to a "Hub" model, which was later reversed late in 2022 after much advocating from the autism community. I was one of the parents that stood up, wrote letters, met with my MLA, and attended the protests in Victoria.

When I heard about new changes to the funding model, I have to admit, my initial reaction was one of outrage and anger. It felt familiar. I thought we had already overcome this obstacle, and I wasn't sure I wanted to have this fight again.

I decided to take a few days to sit with the news; to read the information put out by the government, to listen to other peoples and groups voices, and to allow myself time to gather my thoughts. There are pieces of the new funding model that I really like and parts that I still have questions about.

On a whole, the policy feels a lot more inclusive and has the ability to help a lot more children and families. For years, autism has been the golden diagnosis; the only diagnosis that came with funding and support. Now, complex kiddos with other diagnosis will have the opportunity to access much needed services and funding to support their development.

I also appreciate that if you don't qualify for the new disability benefit, you have the ability to potentially get the disability supplement, which is income tested. As long as you qualify for the Disability Tax Credit, you will be able to access the supplement, but it is based on family income. They are also looking to increase community supports that will be available for families to access. I am still waiting to see how they bring this to fruition and if families have access to qualified professionals in a timely manner. Only time will tell.

I have been visiting the government website every few days, and have noticed that they are updating the site quite frequently and a lot of my initial concerns now have answers and more detailed explanations to them.

One of my concerns that I am still struggling with is the families that may lose funding for their children on the autism spectrum that may make more than the threshold for the disability supplement, which caps at $6000 per child/year.

One key factor that I haven't seen addressed is taking into account the cost of living in Vancouver vs more rural cities in BC. I understand families make choices on where they will raise their children, but when you have a child with disbabilities or complex health issues, you often need to live closer to applicable services, such as BC Children's Hospital and service providers.

The benefit is based on income and the number of eligible children. It pays the most to families with the lowest incomes.

Rates will gradually phase out as household income goes up. For example, families with:

$50,000 adjusted family net income:

One child: $6,000 per year ($500/month)

Two children: $12,000 per year ($1,000/month)

Three children: $18,000 per year ($1,500/month)

$100,000 adjusted family net income:

One child: $4,000 per year ($333.33/month)

Two children: $10,000 per year ($833.33/month)

Three children: $16,000 per year ($1,333.33/month)

$180,000 adjusted family net income:

One child: $800 per year ($66.67/month)

Two children: $6,800 per year ($566.67/month)

Three children: $12,800 per year ($1,066.67/month)

Looking ahead, it seems that the government is rolling out information as it becomes available. They have included a timeline for the new funding model as well for families.

Timeline for new financial supports:

• April 2026: School-Aged Expanded Therapy program begins transition to the Disability Benefit

• July 2026: Autism Funding begins transition to Disability Benefit

• March 31, 2027: Autism Funding ends.

• April 1, 2027: Disability Benefit now available to all eligible families

• July 2027: Disability Supplement payments begin

  
  

Timeline for expanding services:

• Spring 2026: Continued expansion of existing early intervention therapies (occupational, physio, speech therapies and behaviour support)

• Summer 2027: Continued expanded behaviour and mental health supports

• Winter 2027: Expanded navigation and family support

• Spring 2028: Expanded programming for children and teens

Visit the Government Website for Children and Youth with Support Needs to Learn More: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/health/managing-your-health/child-behaviour-development/support-needs

I find change hard. It takes me a while to gather information and collect my thoughts. For now, I want to provide families with the information available and allow everyone time to process and see what this means for their families. We are here to support you and ensure that we are providing the best care possible for all of our kiddos. Social workers will be reaching out to individual families in the summer with more information.

If you are looking for next steps, I would apply for the Disability Tax Credit, if you don't have it already. It is necessary to have in place to be considered for the Disability Supplement. Check out their website to see if you qualify. There are a few different providers that can support you in filling it out and you can use autism funding to cover the cost, if this is a barrier.

I would also recommend joining Autism BC. Membership is free and the more members they have, the better position they are in to advocate for supports moving forward.

I hope that some of this resonates with you, and if you ever need someone to connect with, I love speaking with parents about this journey. You can find me at This World's Ours Centre in Vancouver.

Take care,

Koryn