News

Longueuil – As part of the 2026 Agenda edition of its campaign A strong public system: what if we dared to do it?, the APTS (Alliance du personnel professionnel et technique de la santé et des services sociaux) is unveiling this month’s theme: “Bring our CHSLDs back to life: What if we dared to do it?” As the need for seniors’ residences continues to grow, the APTS argues that it’s urgent to make major reinvestments in public long-term care centres (CHSLDs) to ensure living environments that are dignified, safe and accessible to all.

Too often, moving to a public long-term care facility feels like an obstacle course. There’s a shortage of spots, wait times are getting longer and decisions are made in a hurry, sometimes at the expense of seniors and their loved ones. Meanwhile, private-sector solutions are taking up more and more space, at a higher cost, without guaranteeing quality or resident safety, let alone equitable access for everyone.

“A two-tier system has taken hold, where access to an appropriate living environment depends on the person’s ability to pay,” said APTS president Robert Comeau. “Meanwhile, public CHSLDs lack resources and struggle to meet growing demand. If we want to ensure dignified living conditions for seniors, we need to reverse the trend and invest where it counts.”

More limited access, major human consequences

Universal access to residential care is eroding at an alarming rate. Between 1991 and 2022, the number of beds in CHSLDs per thousand Quebecers dropped by 30%, falling from 7.48 to 5.2. At the same time – and while the number of private seniors’ residences has nearly tripled since 2000 – costs for residents have spiked, increasing from an average of $1,200 per month for a semi-autonomous person to $3,100 over the same period. The development of an elder care market, dominated by a few large players, is deepening inequalities in access to care.

The consequences are all too real on the ground, and care workers face daily dilemmas. When a spot opens up, seniors may be forced to move on short notice, sometimes hundreds of kilometres from their home and their loved ones. Turning down a spot often means dropping back to the bottom of the waiting list.

“Teams are facing extremely difficult situations,” said Émilie Charbonneau, APTS first vice-president. “They have to free up beds even though they know that the available solutions don’t always meet the person’s needs. They support families through heart-wrenching decisions, in a context where resources are lacking and options are limited.”

In June: restoring CHSLDs

To meet growing needs and ensure seniors have dignified living conditions, the APTS proposes restoring public long-term care centres to their full role by:

·       building new public facilities and renovating existing ones;

·       hiring employees and integrating employees from private residences into the public system;

·       improving the quality, continuity and frequency of services;

·       expanding the notion of care to better meet all the needs of residents;

·       increasing oversight for private businesses, particularly by empowering the government to shut down or acquire residences when serious problems arise.

“We can’t keep compensating for underinvestment in the public system with private-sector solutions that are more expensive and unequal,” said Robert Comeau. “Bringing our CHSLDs back to life means making a clear choice: having a public system capable of meeting needs rather than working around them. The solutions are there; we just need the will and the courage to implement them.”

The APTS

The APTS (Alliance du personnel professionnel et technique de la santé et des services sociaux) represents more than 68,000 members who play a key role in ensuring that health and social services institutions run smoothly. Our members provide a wide range of services for all Quebecers, including diagnostic, rehabilitation, nutrition, psychosocial intervention, clinical support, and prevention services.