Funding for Speech Therapy
We Have Funding for You + Your Family
Many families seeking speech therapy services have been impacted by financial and health challenges due to uncertainties resulting from COVID-19 and provincial budget implications. Closures to schools and other public health services have also impacted the delivery of these services.
If your family's circumstances have changed and the cost of speech therapy has become an obstacle, please consider applying for funding through ISTAR, which is available at both the Edmonton and Calgary offices.
Many families have already been helped by our ISTAR Client Assistance Program (ICAP) Fund and we hope to ease the burden for many more.
If you have any questions about funding availability and/or filling out the application form, please call us at 780-492-2619 or email us at istar@ualberta.ca.
Funding FAQs
The ISTAR Client Assistance Program (ICAP) Fund was established to help adults, teenagers and children obtain speech therapy for stuttering or other speech issues at the Institute for Stuttering Treatment and Research (ISTAR). The fund, which is entirely donor supported, is intended to help those who, due to their financial situation, would otherwise be unable to enter a treatment program.
The amount of subsidy available from the fund varies depending on the size of the client's family and the total gross annual income of that family. The larger the family and the lower the income, the larger the potential subsidy. All individuals who are supported by the family's income should be listed on the application, including children and adults. All income received by each family member living in the home should be included in the application. Other sources of available and potential assistance (such as a supplementary health insurance plan) should be explored before applying to the ICAP Fund.
Applicants are asked to complete the application form and send it back to ISTAR by mail, email or fax at the contact information listed below. You may also leave the completed application with your ISTAR/Communication Improvement Program clinician or the receptionist to forward to the ICAP Fund approval team.
If you need assistance filling out the form, please contact ISTAR at 780-492-2619 or istar@ualberta.ca and one of our staff would be happy to walk you through the process.
Mail:
Institute for Stuttering Treatment and Research (ISTAR) Edmonton Office
8205 114 St,
3-48 Corbett Hall
Edmonton, AB Canada T6G 2G4
Email: istar@ualberta.ca
Fax: 780-492-8457
Apply as soon as possible when you are planning to have an assessment or receive therapy at ISTAR. It takes approximately two weeks for a completed application to be processed and for you to be matched with funds. If you are already in therapy, you are still welcome to apply anytime. However, funds cannot be applied to past sessions, only to future sessions.
As funds are limited, not everyone who is eligible will receive a subsidy. At present, combined annual gross household income must not exceed $129,500, but this figure may be adjusted from time to time by the ICAP Fund Approval Team.
The ICAP Fund is aimed at ensuring that those who need it the most, will receive the most. As noted above, eligibility for a subsidy depends on the size of your family and your family's income. The size of family is defined as all individuals supported by the family income, including: (a) adults living in the home; (b) children; and (c) adults 21 years of age and under who are attending a post-secondary educational program and living away from home.
Income includes salary from employment or workers' compensation, pension income and social benefit incomes, such as the Child Benefit Tax Credit, Employment Insurance or Social Assistance. Please list income for all members of your family being supported.
Funding is provided on the condition that you begin treatment within six months of being approved for funding. After that time, funding will lapse, and a new application will be required.
If treatment is suspended for any reason for a period of six months or longer, funding will lapse and any remaining funds will return to the ICAP Fund to be made available to another applicant. A new application will then be required for additional funding.
If you submit an application at least two weeks before your scheduled assessment date, and your household income is less than $61,000, you will likely qualify for funding. It may cover between 10 and 100 per cent of assessment costs depending on your situation. If you do not qualify for assessment funding, you may still qualify for subsequent therapy funding assistance (apply after your self-funded assessment is held, and if your household income is lower than $129,500 you will likely qualify).
If you are applying for assistance for an individual treatment program, an ISTAR clinician will determine an estimate for you and will send to the ICAP Fund on your behalf along with your application form. For other treatment programs, the total cost and dates of treatment are required. If you are applying for assessment costs, please indicate that.
If you are applying between May and October, you must supply verification of your family income in the form of tax assessment notices for the most recently completed tax year for each income earner. If you are applying between November and April, please attach pay stubs indicating year-to-date income for each income earner.
Please contact ISTAR after submitting the application form if you receive alternate sources of funding (such as insurance).
We still need to verify your household income, even if it is zero or near zero. You can send your most recent Tax Notice of Assessment, statements of government subsidy or support, or a letter from your school admissions office (in the case of students living on student loans).
Funds are not received directly by the applicant. You will be notified that your application has been approved and ISTAR will invoice the ICAP Fund directly for the approved portion of the assessment or treatment. You will be responsible for the remaining balance of the assessment or treatment fees if funding does not cover the entire portion.
The ICAP Fund exists because of the generosity of the donors and volunteers of ISTAR. Individuals make donations directly to the fund and donate their time to activities that raise donations. Foundations provide grants and gifts directed specifically for use in the fund. The ICAP Fund would not exist without these contributors.
If you have received support from the ICAP Fund, you can help by letting us know the impact it has had/is having on you. Our donors love to hear about your successes! Send a thank you letter or drawing to ISTAR at istar@ualberta.ca and we will share it with our donors.