TorontoOntario is expanding rules intended to place seniors in culturally appropriate long-term care homes.Move comes after April pilot project was implemented in 29 homesAllison Jones · The Canadian Press · Posted: Dec 10, 2025 2:53 PM EST | Last Updated: 2 hours agoListen to this articleEstimated 1 minuteThe audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence.The new rules allow placement co-ordinators to prioritize cultural admissions within the crisis category, which largely consists of people waiting in hospital, instead of going strictly by position on the crisis list. (Evan Mitsui/CBC)Ontario is expanding rules intended to place seniors in culturally appropriate long-term care homes.The government found that their 2022 law known as Bill 7, which was criticized for allowing people to be placed in a long-term care home not of their choosing, also led to declining and mismatched admissions to the province’s cultural homes.Long-Term Care Minister Natalia Kusendova-Bashta implemented a pilot project in April in 29 homes that serve a particular religious, ethnic or linguistic community and she says that has been successful.The new rules allow placement co-ordinators to prioritize cultural admissions within the crisis category, which largely consists of people waiting in hospital, instead of going strictly by position on the crisis list.That is now being expanded to all of Ontario’s 59 cultural long-term care homes.Lisa Levin, the CEO of AdvantAge Ontario, representing non-profit long-term care homes, says the expansion “will help ensure more seniors can access care that reflects their language, faith, food and traditions, while still prioritizing those with the greatest needs for placement.”
Ontario to expand new rules for cultural long-term care placements
