A change to a policy governing a grant program to reimburse travel for medical appointments means individual applicants will no longer have the ability to receive funding.
During a regular meeting Dec. 10, Rocky View County (RVC) council unanimously approved a major amendment to the Specialized Transportation Assistance Grant, which allows funding to support transportation providers that help seniors and persons with disabilities attend medical appointments.
Notably, because of limited funding, the amendments remove the ability to provide funding to private individuals, who were previously able to apply for reimbursements.
“This change is to streamline the grant program and encourage residents to use the providers that the County already funds,” said Gurbir Nijjar, acting manager of Recreation, Parks and Community Support.
In 2019, council approved $7,000 for private individuals – 14 individuals met the criteria to receive $500 of reimbursement. That portion amounted to 2.3 per cent of the $303,500 available to fund the grant. The majority of those funds were directed to the Rocky View Regional Handibus Society, which received $289,000.
Coun. Kevin Hanson was absent from the meeting.
