Sask. legislation aims to give ministry 'teeth' for enforcing care home rules: minister - CBC

Rural and Remote Health and Seniors Minister Lori Carr has introduced new legislation that would bring the personal care home regime in Saskatchewan in line with other provinces. (Kirk Fraser/CBC)Social SharingSaskatchewan's 237 licensed personal care homes are on notice that the province will be strengthening oversight.

On Thursday, the provincial government introduced the Personal Care Homes Amendment Act, 2026.

If passed, the legislation will provide the Ministry of Health with the ability to issue orders to ensure personal care homes follow rules. It would also increase fines if problems are not corrected — bringing Saskatchewan in line with other provincial regimes.

"What it'll do is actually give teeth to the ministry to be able to enforce the rules and regulations that are in place," said Lori Carr, the minister of rural and remote health and seniors.

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The changes came after discussions with seniors and their families across the province, Carr said.

People told the Ministry of Health to ensure that if a complaint is made, it "can be dealt with in a timely fashion," Carr said.

"That's what this legislation will do."

Carr said the ministry also consulted with the province's care homes before the legislation was introduced.

"Of course people don't like more regulation, but they understand that it's something that has to happen," she said.

Carr said the goal is to encourage personal care homes — privately run businesses that provide housing, meals, and help with daily activities and personal care — to follow regulations.

Saskatchewan's Ministry of Health oversees care homes through licensing, inspections and investigations of complaints.

Under the current legislation, the ministry can suspend a personal care home's licence, appoint public administrators or pursue prosecution.

The Ministry of Health said those are "not practical tools for everyday enforcement." The proposed amendments introduced on Thursday are supposed to address that gap.

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The ministry would also have the power to issue new administrative penalties of $5,000 and an additional fine of up to $1,000 per day if a problem continues.

Existing fines for personal care home operators that commit offences under the act, such as operating without a licence, would be raised under the proposed changes.

The Ministry of Health said individual fines would increase from $1,000 to $10,000, and the fine for a corporation would increase from $5,000 to as much $25,000. In both cases, additional fines would be levied for each day the offence continues.

Alexander Quon is the provincial affairs reporter for CBC Saskatchewan. He has been a reporter with CBC Saskatchewan since 2021 and is happy to be working in his hometown of Regina after half a decade in Atlantic Canada. He has previously worked with the CBC News investigative unit in Nova Scotia and Global News in Halifax. Alexander specializes in freedom of information requests and data reporting. He can be reached at: alexander.quon@cbc.ca.