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People living with chronic health conditions who rely on the government for income say money for transportation to medical appointments has disappeared from their payments.

A government spokeswoman said policies haven’t changed and that people who receive income support payments have their needs re-evaluated each month.

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“I’m really heartbroken for myself and all the other people affected by this,” said Milo Gallant at a press conference organized by the NDP on Thursday. “It’s really isolating, honestly, to feel like they think that they can just take that away from equally deserving people.”

Gallant has post-traumatic stress disorder and uses the extra payment to buy a bus pass to get to therapy sessions. Money disappeared from Gallant’s February payment with no warning.

NDP community and social services critic and St. Albert MLA Marie Renaud said her phone began buzzing incessantly last week when people who receive income support payments and can’t work for medical reasons noticed a $97 supplement for transportation missing from their payments. There are about 22,000 Alberta people who can’t work for health reasons receiving income support.