Care Home Contract Questions Every Alberta Family Should Ask
Care Home Contract Questions Every Alberta Family Should Ask
Signing a continuing care admission agreement under pressure — often within days of a hospital discharge — is one of the most consequential financial decisions an Alberta family will make. Licensed continuing care homes in Alberta are exempt from the Residential Tenancies Act, which means standard tenant protections like rent caps and dispute resolution through the RTDRS do not apply. That exemption makes the contract itself your primary line of defence.
Here are the questions that matter most before you sign.
What Charges Are Regulated and What Are Not
Alberta's Continuing Care Act regulates maximum accommodation charges for Type A (nursing home) and Type B (supportive living) designated spaces. As of August 1, 2026, the daily cap is $71.85 for a shared room and $83.05 for a private room. Operators cannot charge more than these regulated maximums for room, meals, housekeeping, and utilities.
However, operators can charge separately for "enhanced services" — things like cable television, telephone lines, personal laundry, and companion services. These add-on charges are not regulated. Before signing, ask for a complete fee schedule that separates regulated accommodation charges from optional service fees. If the contract bundles everything into a single monthly total, request an itemized breakdown.
For private-pay assisted living (non-designated spaces), there are no provincial fee caps at all. Private operators set their own rates, and care surcharges based on assessed need can add $500 to $2,500 per month on top of base rent.
How Fee Increases Work
In publicly designated spaces, accommodation charges adjust annually on August 1 based on the provincial Consumer Price Index — the operator has no discretion over the increase amount.
Private operators follow different rules. Base accommodation rent can increase once every 12 months with 90 days' written notice, but care and service fees are completely unregulated. An operator can raise the "level of care" surcharge at any time with notice, and there is no statutory limit on the size of that increase. Ask three questions:
- What is the current level-of-care surcharge, and what triggers a reassessment?
- How much notice will the facility provide before increasing care fees?
- Is there a historical record of annual care-fee increases you can review?
Staffing Ratios and Care Hours
Alberta eliminated the historical minimum of 1.9 direct-care hours per resident per day when the Continuing Care Act came into force in April 2024. The Ministry of Health reports that it funds an average of 3.62 care hours per resident per day, but this is a system-wide average, not a guaranteed minimum at any individual facility.
Ask the administrator directly:
- What is the current staffing ratio on day, evening, and night shifts?
- How many registered nurses (RNs) versus health care aides (HCAs) are on duty per shift?
- What happens to staffing levels when employees call in sick or during holiday periods?
If the facility cannot or will not provide these numbers, that is a significant red flag. The Continuing Care Act requires operators to meet "reasonable care standards," but without a statutory floor, families must monitor care delivery themselves.
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Resident and Family Councils
The Continuing Care Act consolidated the former Resident and Family Councils Act. Every licensed continuing care facility must support the formation of a Resident and Family Council if residents or family members request one. These councils give families a structured channel to raise concerns about care quality, staffing, fees, and facility operations.
Ask whether the facility has an active council. If it does, request the contact information for the current chair. If it does not, ask the administrator what process exists for establishing one. A facility that resists or discourages council formation is limiting your family's most effective oversight tool.
Discharge, Transfer, and Estate Liability
The contract should spell out exactly what happens if your parent needs to move — whether voluntarily or because the facility determines it can no longer meet their care needs. Key questions:
- How much notice is required from either side to terminate the agreement?
- If the resident dies or is transferred to hospital, how many days does the estate remain liable for fees? In private facilities, estates commonly remain liable for 10 days of care fees plus 20 days of base rent after departure.
- Are there any refundable entrance deposits, and if so, what is the repayment timeline? Under Alberta's Consumer Protection Act, refund schedules must comply with the 180-day repayment rule.
What to Do Before You Sign
Do not sign on the spot, even if the placement team is pressuring a quick decision. Request a copy of the full agreement to review at home. If your parent is entering a private-pay facility or signing a Life Lease, have an elder-law lawyer review the contract before execution — the cost of one hour of legal review is trivial compared to the financial exposure of an unfavourable agreement.
The Alberta Long-Term Care Costs & Subsidies Guide includes a contract audit checklist that walks you through every clause to examine, the red flags that signal predatory terms, and the exact questions to raise with the facility administrator before committing.
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Download the Alberta — Long-Term Care Cost Checklist — a printable guide with checklists, scripts, and action plans you can start using today.