Canada

Canada: 

Note: ProtExPlan and IMG can direct bill any Canadian hospital for inpatient procedures. We employ French speaking staff if you wish service in French.

Information about Canada's National Health System

Canada has an excellent National Health System which is administered by the Provinces. Although there are differences in policy at the provincial level, the system standards are set by Federal legislation to ensure uniformity nationwide. We do not sell a lot of medical insurance to expatriates in Canada because legal residents are entitled to join the inexpensive system that is actually free in some provinces like Quebec. The provinces however, charge US style high prices to visitors or Canadian non-residents. Canadian citizens living abroad as non-residents are charged the same high prices as visitors. If Canada charged less than US prices, there would be a flood of Americans coming across the border for treatment because 40% of Americans are uninsured. It is a wise idea to always have travel insurance, or to have coverage by your medical plan allowing travel to Canada to avoid problems.

Returning Canadians and Permanent Residents:

If you are a Canadian expatriate returning after having been a non-resident, it will take you 90 days to get back on your provincial medical plan back home. If you are a Permanent Resident (Immigrant), you are treated the same as a Canadian citizen. If you have married a Canadian and do not have Permanent Resident status, you will have to buy private insurance cover until you are issued a Ministerial Permit or are granted Permanent Residency status.

Canadians Leaving:

Some Canadian expatriates try to stay on their provincial plan by maintaining the fiction they still live in Canada by continuing to pay premiums and keeping the same address for correspondence. You will find that if you claim then you won't be covered. There is generally a grace period of up to a year where the Provinces let you get away with it, but after you become a non-resident you could be in trouble. If you declare non-residency to the Canada Customs & Revenue Agency so you don't have to pay Canadian income tax, then you won't really have a defence.

Snowbirds (retired Canadians) leaving for warmer climes in Florida and other places for a few months per year are OK. They are residents and still pay income tax in Canada. They will find that if they do need medical attention in the US, their provincial plan will only reimburse them up to Canadian arbitrarily low set limits. For example, Quebec will only reimburse C$100 per day and US hospitals routinely charge $2,000 to $3,000 per day. There could be a huge shortfall and financial ruin. Make sure you buy travel insurance to cover the difference.