No dignity for Albertans who die in provincial care
Edmonton – Edmonton-Centre MLA Laurie Blakeman reveals a deplorable government policy that robs children, AISH recipients and the poor of the dignity of a decent burial.
Last week Mitch Thomson, President of the Alberta Funeral Service Association (AFSA), shared a letter with Blakeman explaining why AFSA, which represents all funeral homes in the province, was cancelling their contract with the government to provide funeral services for people who die while in the province’s care.
“Everything is being done on the cheap,” Blakeman says. “Children are being buried in adult coffins. Only embalming is allowed, which ignores the needs of Jews, Sikhs and Hindus. Religious leaders are expected to perform burial services for free. It’s like something out of Dickens – paupers’ graves for people who have already suffered enough.”
Blakeman notes that the Speech from the Throne promised that the government would “find new and effective ways to reach out to vulnerable Albertans and make them part of the province’s success story.”
“If they are sincere about reaching out to vulnerable Albertans, they could start by giving vulnerable families some relief and closure when they lose a loved one,” Blakeman says. “A province with Alberta’s resources can afford to offer vulnerable Albertans who die in its care the respect and dignity of a proper funeral. The Minister of Human Services should renegotiate this contract to provide that respect and dignity.”
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For further information, contact:
Earl J. Woods, Senior Communications Advisor
(780) 904-5430
Denis Lapointe, Director, Southern Alberta Liberal Caucus Office
(403) 860-4330