Moving to Canada can be a challenge for individual candidates; hence seeking assistance from emigrants makes the process smooth and seamless. Learning a few things about the country’s healthcare system is essential, especially for foreigners. Canada has a robust universal healthcare system that entirely covers both Canadian-born and permanent residents. Contrarily, foreigners are not fully covered; hence, they must pay for certain medical services while in the Great White North.
How The Canadian Healthcare System Works
Canadian-born citizens and permanent residents have an advantage when it comes to accessing medical services in Canada. In contrast, ex-pats have to pay for some medical cover to access certain medical services. Besides, the waiting period to see a doctor can at times be somehow longer. When planning to move to Canada, it is vital to know what to expect and how to be eligible for the Canadian public healthcare system.
Public Healthcare Insurance Covers in Canada
Medicare is the primary Canadian public healthcare insurance that covers both primary healthcare and medical services. Notably, different provinces and territories in Canada have varying public healthcare covers. Despite these differences, each province and territory offers emergency to all residents.
Here is an overview of public healthcare insurance in different regions in Canada.
Alberta
Medical insurance in Alberta are facilitated by the Alberta Health Care Insurance Plan (AHCIP). It covers medically necessary doctors’ services; specific dental and oral health needs, and medically diagnostics services such as laboratory procedures; oral and maxillofacial surgery services, psychiatrist visits, nursing services, radiotherapy, hospital stays, and meals, anesthetic facilities, bariatric surgery, and inter-facility ambulance transfer.
British Columbia
In British Columbia, healthcare services are covered under the Medical Services Plan (MSP). It allows for coverage for hospital dental and oral surgeries, certain orthodontic services, midwives’ and doctors’ services, and diagnostic services, such as X-rays.
Manitoba
The Manitoba Health provides for medical cover in Manitoba. The cover facilitates for medically doctors’ services, eyeglasses for seniors, seven chiropractor visits yearly, surgeries and anesthetics, specific dental treatments, hospital medication administration, occupational, therapy, speech therapy and physiotherapy, dietic counseling and personal home care.
New Brunswick
New Brunswick’s Canadians are covered under Medicare. The cover pays for doctors’ and hospital services, certain medically dental surgeries, nursing service, drugs administered during hospital stays, obligatory laboratory and X-ray services, therapies in physiotherapy, speech, audiology, and occupational, regular surgical supplies.
