It can cost up to 39% more to thrive in the GTA if you have a disability: Research

When Franklyn McFadden needs to repair his $15,000 wheelchair, he will be responsible for the costs.

It’s just one of many additional costs he says come with living with a disability.

“I did not choose to be a person in a wheelchair, and I do not claim to enjoy having to use one,” he said.

It is widely recognized that living with a disability brings with it a number of specific needs. And now, new research from the nonprofit Wellesley Institute shows that the cost of thriving in the GTA — which it defines as living a healthy, engaged life — is 39 percent higher if you live with a disability than for those without a disability to have.

“I thought the information was quite reliable,” said McFadden, a disability advocate, after looking at their findings.

“In fact,” McFadden said, “I don’t think all the costs associated with having a disability have been properly addressed.”

The study found that leading a healthy, engaged life as a single, working-age adult with a mild to moderate physical or mental health disability in Toronto can cost as much as $81,000 per year, compared to $62,000 per year without a disability.

In Mississauga, those costs are even higher: as much as $116,000 more per year for people with disabilities.

“We learned that people with disabilities have additional needs in all aspects of their health, but in particular there were additional costs in the areas of food and nutrition, transportation, housing, social participation and saving for the future,” says Christine Sheppard, researcher at the Wellesley Institute. .

The Wellesley Institute says the estimates are drawn from consultations with 39 people with disabilities and supplemented with price information from major retailers and suppliers and national spending surveys.

Researchers asked participants what items, resources, and services they would need to thrive, and then researchers calculated their costs. For example, added together: average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Toronto, insurance rates, taxi rides, basic accessibility aids in a bathroom/kitchen, laundry services, groceries and delivery services.

The institute notes that the cost figures in its report are a guideline and not precise personal expenses; each individual will have different needs.

Researchers discovered that because people with disabilities often retire at a younger age, they have a greater need for retirement savings. And there are about eight million Canadians with disabilities, Sheppard said.

“When people don’t have access to the resources they need to live a good life, they are forced to make choices that put their health at risk,” she said.

“Individuals, communities, employers and governments all have a role to play.”

LOOK | Advocate explains Ontario’s path to accessibility:

Lifelong disability advocate on Ontario’s path to accessibility

The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act aims to make the province fully accessible by 2025. Before the deadline, CBC’s Vanessa Balintec speaks with Tracy Odell, former president of the advocacy group Citizens With Disabilities Ontario, about her experiences as a wheelchair user and lifelong advocate for accessibility for all.

McFadden knows firsthand what it feels like to make those compromises. He remembers times when he was struggling financially and opted for fast food because it was more accessible and cheaper.

“If we want to start somewhere, we have to give people enough resources to at least lift them out of poverty,” he said.

“We don’t choose the lives we live. We just want to make the best choices and make the best efforts to live the good life.”