Special Needs Grants

• Assessments and Reassessments: up to $1,500 per 12-month period to assist with residual amounts not covered by federal, provincial, or local resources, or personal insurance
  • Examples include but not limited to, psychoeducational assessment, psychological assessment, speech therapy assessment, and occupational therapy assessment
  • More than one application can be submitted within the 12-month period until the maximum grant amount is reached
  • A 12-month period starts on the first approved application of that year
• Other: up to $1,500 per 12-month period to assist with offsetting the costs associated with assistive devices (electronic devices and accessories, sensory items, etc.), and respite care provided by an individual/organization that holds necessary credentials to support, various therapies, medical travel, prescriptions not covered by insurance, etc.
  • More than one application can be submitted within the 12-month period until the maximum grant amount is reached
  • A 12-month period starts on the first approved application of that year

Regular and Reserve Force serving members with a dependent family member with a diagnosed physical, intellectual, or emotional condition requiring special medical or educational services are eligible for a Special Needs Grant. Please note the dependent(s) are required to be listed on the member’s MPRR.

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What You Need To Apply:

Complete the following forms:  (red contains hyper link to form)

• Schedule A (complete and include for every new submission throughout the 12-month period)
• Schedule F (complete and include for every new submission throughout the 12-month period)
• SOT Expense Tracker (required for submitting multiple receipts and insurance statements such as Canada Life)

Include:

• Serving member's MPRR
• A VOID cheque or banking details of the serving member or joint with the serving member
• All supporting documents in PDF format.
  Follow these links if you are unsure how to create or convert to a PDF on your computer or cellphone:
  Save or convert to PDF or XPS in Office Desktop apps - Microsoft Support
  Save a PDF of your file on your mobile device - Microsoft Support

Supporting documents:

For the Assessment/Reassessment Category:

• Referral or Recommendation – include a letter from medical/educational professional with the specific assessment or reassessment required OR highlight where written within the assessment report (usually included at the end of the report or included within the first paragraphs of the new assessment report). Referral or recommendation must clearly identify the service required.

• Paid Invoice(s) or Receipt(s) – include eligible dates within 6 months of application/submission date. This also applies to service dates with health care professionals.

• Insurance Statement(s) – include (as applicable) detailed Canada Life or other provider statement(s) Note: For families with dual insurance (member and spouse or member and member), paid invoices or receipts are submitted to both insurances as per their policy prior to applying to Support Our Troops. (See instruction sheet for capturing Canada Life statements.)

• Expense Tracker (as indicated above) – complete and include with applications that contain multiple paid invoices/receipts and cross-reference with matching insurance statements. Insurance statement noting the maximum reached is required.  

For the Other Category:

• Diagnosis (required for initial application only) – include letter confirmation of diagnosis from medical professional or highlight written confirmation within an assessment report.

• Referral or Recommendation – include letter from medical/educational professional with specifics of referral/recommendation or highlight written referral/recommendation within the assessment report (usually included at the end of the report) Referral or recommendation must clearly identify the service required.

• Assistive Devices/Equipment (wheel chair, hearing aids, etc.) - Support Our Troops considers grant assistance after all other available support is accessed. Is coverage available through the province under an Assistive Devices Program (ADP)? If yes, include confirmation of coverage of specific item in the application package.

• Insurance Statement(s) – include (as applicable) detailed Canada Life or other applicable provider statement(s) Note: For families with dual insurance (serving member and spouse or both serving members), paid invoices or receipts are submitted to both insurances as per their policy prior to applying to Support Our Troops. (See instruction sheet for capturing Canada Life statements.)

• Paid Invoice(s) and/or Receipt(s) – include eligible dates within 6 months of application/submission date. This also applies to service dates with health care professionals.

• Expense Tracker – complete and include with applications that include multiple paid invoices/receipts and cross-reference with matching insurance statements. Insurance statement noting the maximum reached is required.