Funding programs in Saskatchewan for hospital beds, mattresses, lifts and cushions

How to read this page

We can’t tell you which program will pay. This page shows you where to ask, and what to ask.

It lists programs that help pay for equipment, and the public programs you may need to go through first.

• Listed in its own document means we read the program’s own page or document. The entry says what it names, in its words where the type matters.
• Worth asking means the program exists and may help, but we have not established what it covers. The entry gives who it is for and its official link.
• Other help with costs covers home changes, travel, vehicles, taxes, work and local service clubs. Most of these do not pay for a mattress, a hospital bed, a lift or a cushion.

The labels show the equipment a program’s document names. A program naming a kind of equipment does not mean a particular product is covered: the program decides. A mattress and an overlay are different things, and so are a bed and its mattress, so ask about the exact equipment your clinician recommends.

• Powered mattress or surface
• Pressure or therapeutic mattress
• Mattress overlay
• Hospital bed
• Lift
• Sling
• Positioning

Private insurance and workplace plans are on their own page: workplace and retiree plans. Start there if the person, or their spouse or common-law partner, has ever had benefits through work.

• Listed in its own document

  Saskatchewan Aids to Independent Living (SAIL): equipment loans

  • Hospital bed
  • Lift

  Saskatchewan residents with a valid health services number who live in the community and are not eligible for the equipment through another government agency.

  The current policy lists, on free loan, an electric hospital bed, side rails, a “mattress” (it does not say what type), an overbed table and a patient lift. It does not list a powered mattress or an overlay. The January 2018 version of the same policy listed an “alternating pressure mattress” and an “alternating pressure pump”; they are no longer listed.

  An occupational therapist or physical therapist sends the request. A home assessment is required before an electric hospital bed is issued. People living in a personal care home or special-care home can borrow only walkers, wheelchairs and cushions.

  Official source: publications.saskatchewan.caPolicy last updated July 2024; equipment section April 2024Checked November 11, 2026

• Listed in its own document

  SAIL Paraplegia Program

  • Lift

  People with paralysis of all or most of the lower limbs and trunk from a lesion or disease of the spinal cord, referred to the program by a physiatrist.

  The policy lists “specialized rehabilitation equipment (with prior approval)” without naming the items, and a home access grant that can go toward an indoor lift, such as a ceiling track lift. It does not name a mattress or a hospital bed.

  Prior approval is required. A physiatrist, occupational therapist or physical therapist sends the written request to SAIL.

  Official source: publications.saskatchewan.caSection last amended November 2021Checked November 11, 2026

• Listed in its own document

  Supplementary Health Benefits

  People enrolled in Saskatchewan Income Support (SIS), Saskatchewan Assured Income for Disability (SAID) or Saskatchewan Employment Incentive (SEI).

  Under medical supplies and appliances, the program’s page lists surgical dressings, some incontinence aids, ostomy supplies and similar items. That page does not list a mattress, a hospital bed or a lift.

  A physician or authorized health professional must prescribe the item, and many items need prior approval. The program pays the provider and does not pay clients back.

  Official source: saskatchewan.caChecked November 11, 2026

• Listed in its own document

  SGI injury benefits (No Fault coverage)

  • Hospital bed

  People injured in a motor vehicle accident who receive injury benefits from Saskatchewan Government Insurance (SGI).

  The regulation lists “medically required beds, equipment and accessories” among the items SGI may fund. SGI’s injury manual puts beds and mattresses among items it would not normally fund, and says it may consider them in limited circumstances. Neither document names a type of mattress.

  SGI’s consent is needed before the expense.

  Official source: sgi.sk.caManual section effective January 2021Checked November 11, 2026

• Listed in its own document

  Kinsmen Foundation (TeleMiracle)

  • Lift

  Saskatchewan residents with a valid Saskatchewan Health Card who cannot pay for equipment themselves or get it through another program.

  The foundation says it funds “special needs equipment and/or mobility equipment”, and gives ceiling track lifts and portable lifts among its examples. Its pages do not name a mattress or a hospital bed, and there is no itemized equipment list.

  Apply before buying: past expenses are a listed reason for declining. An application needs a letter of support from the right health professional (an occupational therapist for all equipment), income documents for every adult in the household, and two quotes from two different medical vendors. The foundation is a funder of last resort.

  Official source: telemiracle.comChecked November 11, 2026

Private insurance in Saskatchewan: see workplace and retiree plans, which also covers the insurers.

If a program is missing

This list is not complete. If a program is missing, ask your clinician or your local home and community care service which programs apply, and ask each one the same three questions.

Back to help paying for equipment, for the three questions, the question to copy and the worksheet.