The 3 months medical insurance dilemma!
May 7th 2008, 7:02 am
#16
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 829
Re: The 3 months medical insurance dilemma!
I emailed Blue cross for some info and this is what they said
We thank you for your interest in regards to Blue Cross products!
Our Visitors to Canada for Landed Immigrants plan provides up to $100,000
in quality insurance coverage foreigners and their families, aged 69 or
under, who are immigrating to Canada. This plan is ideal for those awaiting
their provincial government's health insurance program coverage.
Benefits include coverage for Hospital and Medical expenses, including the
cost of hospital services, physicians' fees, diagnostic services,
prescription drugs when required as part of an emergency treatment,
ambulance services (including repatriation to your country of residence by
air ambulance when medically necessary), etc.
This plan must be purchased prior or within the first 30 days of arrival to
Canada. It is available for a maximum length of 366 days and will be
subject to a 72-hour waiting period if purchased after arrival in Canada.
Since we do not complete quotes through the internet, for further
information or to get a quote, please contact one of our representatives by
calling our local number at xxx-xxxx, on weekdays from 8am to 9pm or
during weekends from 8am to 5pm.
Note that since yourself and your spouse are under the age of 61, you can
visit our website and proceed
with a travel insurance internet quote by choosing the options "Visitors to
Canada" and specifying your status as "Landed immigrants".
We thank you for your interest in regards to Blue Cross products!
Our Visitors to Canada for Landed Immigrants plan provides up to $100,000
in quality insurance coverage foreigners and their families, aged 69 or
under, who are immigrating to Canada. This plan is ideal for those awaiting
their provincial government's health insurance program coverage.
Benefits include coverage for Hospital and Medical expenses, including the
cost of hospital services, physicians' fees, diagnostic services,
prescription drugs when required as part of an emergency treatment,
ambulance services (including repatriation to your country of residence by
air ambulance when medically necessary), etc.
This plan must be purchased prior or within the first 30 days of arrival to
Canada. It is available for a maximum length of 366 days and will be
subject to a 72-hour waiting period if purchased after arrival in Canada.
Since we do not complete quotes through the internet, for further
information or to get a quote, please contact one of our representatives by
calling our local number at xxx-xxxx, on weekdays from 8am to 9pm or
during weekends from 8am to 5pm.
Note that since yourself and your spouse are under the age of 61, you can
visit our website and proceed
with a travel insurance internet quote by choosing the options "Visitors to
Canada" and specifying your status as "Landed immigrants".
May 7th 2008, 7:38 am
#17
Cynically amused.
Joined: Oct 2002
Location: BC
Posts: 3,648
Re: The 3 months medical insurance dilemma!
The OP could just toddle down to an Autoplan agent and get insurance for newcomers....
If you are unfortunate enough to be hospitalized within the two + months that you are on the newcomer policy, ER treatment, minus the ambulance, is usually covered by MSP, even where your newcomer $ coverage has been exceeded. In BC, MSP doesn't kick in for two months plus the balance of the month of arrival. Register with MSP anyway (now) and absent pre-existing conditions that could land you in ER, you'll be fine for a couple of $ a day. I should add, that I did not follow my own advice and ended up in a hospital in the third month after arrival, with a bad case of shingles. My stupidity, recklessness and lack of foresight cost me a lot of $$ I can tell you. 
MSP still covered the ER part, even though I had no coverage at all. I paid for the three days in a bed and the drugs.
If you are unfortunate enough to be hospitalized within the two + months that you are on the newcomer policy, ER treatment, minus the ambulance, is usually covered by MSP, even where your newcomer $ coverage has been exceeded. In BC, MSP doesn't kick in for two months plus the balance of the month of arrival. Register with MSP anyway (now) and absent pre-existing conditions that could land you in ER, you'll be fine for a couple of $ a day. I should add, that I did not follow my own advice and ended up in a hospital in the third month after arrival, with a bad case of shingles. My stupidity, recklessness and lack of foresight cost me a lot of $$ I can tell you. MSP still covered the ER part, even though I had no coverage at all. I paid for the three days in a bed and the drugs.
Last edited by dingbat; May 7th 2008 at 7:40 am.
