AISH to ADAP: standing with disabled Albertans
In spring 2026, Albertans emailed their MLAs to stand with Albertans with disabilities, raising concerns about benefit reductions, higher housing costs, and changes to disability support.
The campaign and why it mattered
Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped (AISH) provides financial support to eligible Albertans with disabilities. Changes to that support can affect people's ability to pay for housing, food, transportation, and the care they need.
The transition to the Alberta Disability Assistance Program (ADAP), alongside concerns about reduced benefits and rising subsidized housing costs, prompted Albertans to ask how people with disabilities would be protected from greater financial hardship.
Patients First invited people across Alberta to share these concerns with their MLAs. The campaign ran from April 21 to May 22, 2026, and focused on protecting the safety net that helps people live with dignity and look after their health.
- new community members
- 1,378new community members
- emails sent to government
- 1,013emails sent to government
What happened next
- Albertans sent 1,013 messages to government asking elected representatives to protect disability support.
- Physicians publicly raised concerns about the health effects of financial hardship and called for the transition to be paused.
- Calgary, Edmonton, Medicine Hat, and Grande Prairie also called for a pause. The campaign brought concerns into public discussion; it did not resolve the wider challenges facing Albertans with disabilities.