Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you for the opportunity to participate in this discussion. I'll do quick introductions, and then we'll get started. Gareth Jones is the community service director and April Coulson is the home care manager. We're going to divide this into three equal presentations.
I just want to give you a bit of information about who we are. The Okanagan Indian Band is located in Vernon, B.C. We're part of the Okanagan Nation, which consists of seven bands. The seven bands are all located in the Okanagan Valley, and mainly in Penticton, Kelowna and the Vernon area. There are approximately 5,500 people in our nation. Our community chief is Chief Byron Louis. Our grand chief is Grand Chief Stewart Phillip.
With that, I know time is short, so I will get started.
Currently the Okanagan Indian Band has approximately 2,100 members. Currently about 428 of them, which is about 25%, are aged between 50 and 64. In five years, we're going to have trouble taking care of what amounts to about 25% of our population. They will be over 65, or in that ballpark. We won't have the capacity to take care of our people if our program funding doesn't change.
The Okanagan Indian Band does not have a long-term facility. The Okanagan Indian Band's health services program offers home care services. Home care programs are not structured or funded as long-term care. This results in gaps in continuity of care. They require regular and mandatory assessments for eligibility.
Clients of both programs must be status Indians living on a reserve. This creates a hardship for people who can't afford to live in our community. Housing is one of the large issues of not having enough homes for everybody to be in our community.
Both programs have criteria and limited funding to provide care to clients in need of extensive support, resulting in requests for long-term care placements sooner.