The Government of Alberta has launched a new income-support initiative, the Alberta Disability Assistance Program (ADAP), with the stated goal of helping people with disabilities pursue employment. However, legal experts and advocates argue the program, enacted through Bill 12 in early December 2025, fails fundamental tests of fairness and will harm the very people it claims to assist.
From AISH to ADAP: A Forced Transition with Lower Support
Currently, many Albertans with severe disabilities rely on the Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped (AISH) program, which provides a monthly support of $1,901. While AISH itself is criticized for inadequate funding, the new ADAP framework is seen as a step backward. Bill 12 mandates the reassignment of individuals from AISH to ADAP if they are deemed capable of working, resulting in a lower level of income support.
This is particularly contentious because to qualify for AISH, applicants must have medical opinion from one or more physicians stating they are permanently unable to earn a living. These files are often reviewed multiple times. The new legislation allows the government to ignore this existing medical evidence and force people into the new program regardless.
Procedural Fairness Under Fire
Lawyers analyzing the changes point to critical failures in procedural fairness. The most glaring issue is that Bill 12 prevents individuals from appealing their forced reassignment from AISH to ADAP. This means even if all documented evidence confirms an individual cannot work, and they have previously been legally determined as such, there is no formal recourse to challenge the decision.
This removal of the right to appeal a decision that fundamentally impacts livelihood and survival is a central point of criticism. It raises serious questions about whether decisions under ADAP will be evidence-based and transparent.
Impact on 80,000 Albertans
The changes directly affect the roughly 80,000 Albertans currently receiving AISH. Advocates warn that moving people already living in poverty to a program with reduced benefits will make their lives more precarious and unstable. The shift contradicts the government's stated aim of support, instead creating greater hardship.
Protests have already emerged, including a rally outside the Alberta Supports office in northeast Calgary on December 3, 2025, where AISH recipients and supporters demonstrated against the provincial changes.
While supporting employment for people with disabilities is a laudable objective, the design and implementation of ADAP, as outlined in Bill 12, are widely viewed as undermining fairness and security for a vulnerable population. The program appears to prioritize cost-saving over the well-being of disabled Albertans, making substantive help and a fair process secondary concerns.
