Q Am I Eligible For Ontario Health Insurance
You may be eligible for the Ontario Health Insurance Plan if you are included under one of the following categories:
AND, generally speaking
- you make your primary place of residence in Ontario
- you are in Ontario for at least 153 days of the first 183 days immediately following the date you establish residence in Ontario
- you are in Ontario for at least 153 days in any 12-month period.
Tourists, transients or visitors are not eligible for OHIP coverage.
Your ongoing eligibility for Ontario health insurance coverage is based solely on you having an OHIP-eligible citizenship or immigration statuses, and on you:
- making your primary place of residence in Ontario, and
- meeting the requirement of being physically present in Ontario for at least 153 days in any 12-month period.
The above is only a summary of the OHIP eligibility provisions of Regulation 552 for your reference. You should consult the actual regulation for the specific requirements applicable to you. The provisions in Regulation 552 prevail over this summary.
Everyone, including babies and children, must have their own health cards. Always carry your health card with you. You should be ready to show it every time you need medical services.
If you have questions about when your OHIP coverage will begin, please contact ServiceOntario INFOline at 1-866-532-3161 or visit your local ServiceOntario Centre.
What Is Ohip Plus/ohip+
OHIP+ provides drug products for patients 24 years and under who are not covered by a private plan, at no cost. Those who are eligible for OHIP Plus do not need to enroll. All they need is a health card number and a valid prescription for an eligible medication.
Common eligible medications include:
- Medications for diabetics such as insulin and diabetes test strips
- Medications to treat arthritis, epilepsy and other chronic conditions
- Medication/drugs for attention deficit disorder
- Medications/drugs to treat childhood cancers or other rare conditions
- Epinephrine injectable products
- Medications/drugs to treat mental health conditions
- Help to quit smoking: This can include up to a year of pharmacist-assisted counselling and medication for those who are 18 years or older
Medication that is not on this list may be eligible for reimbursement under private health insurance plans.
See our guide on private healthcare insurance in Ontario
Q I Have Had My Name Legally Changed How Do I Have My New Name Put On My Health Card
To change your name on your health card to reflect your new legal name, you must visit a ServiceOntario Centre, complete a Change of Information and present the original of one of the following:
- Certified copy of the court order for a change in name
- Change of name certificate
- Adoption court order
If you do not already have a photo health card, you must also provide three original documents to prove citizenship, Ontario residence and identity.
If you have any questions regarding your own specific situation, call the ServiceOntario, INFOline at 1-866-532-3161.
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What Health Services Are Not Insured
Services not insured include the following:
- personal care home benefits outside of Manitoba
- health services performed at the request of a third party, such as examinations for employment, drivers’ licences, insurance, travel, immigration or emigration
- care and treatment covered by the Workers’ Compensation Board, the Department of Veterans’ Services or by other statute
- services that are not medically required
- preparation of records, reports, certificates or communications, or testimony in a court
- drugs, medications, vaccines, sera or biological products, materials and surgical supplies, except as provided for under the regulations
- ambulance and transportation subsidies except as listed in the regulations
- private nursing
The Reimbursement Max Is $12 Per Test
The Biden administration aims to incentivize insurers to cover the cost of certain at-home tests upfront, at the point of sale, so that youre not fronting any money whatsoever, according to the HHS. Unfortunately, insurance companies havent yet released details on how upfront coverage will work.
But insurers are still required to reimburse you up to $12 per FDA-approved test if you pay out of pocket, even if your insurance provider prefers a certain pharmacy or type of test.
For example, if an individual has a plan that offers direct coverage through their preferred pharmacy but that individual instead purchases tests through an online retailer, the plan is still required to reimburse them up to $12 per individual test, the HHS says.
That also means, for instance, if you get health insurance through Aetna, an insurance provider owned by CVS, the company cant force you to purchase tests offered only through CVS pharmacies.
Additionally, over-the-counter testing kits usually come in packs of two or more. The CMS website clarifies that a two-pack kit would be considered two separately reimbursable tests, for up to $12 apiece.
That said, pay close attention to the price-per-test when youre shopping around. At-home tests are hard to come by in stores and at online retailers. On sites like Amazon, for example, vendors sometimes hike prices up when supply is low. As a result, the per-test cost can easily exceed $12 in certain cases.
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Q How Do I Renew My Child’s Health Card
Children under the age of 15 ½ years have health cards that are exempt from both photo and signature.
Your child’s renewal notice will be mailed approximately two months prior to the expiry date shown on the front of his or her photo health card. In most cases, children under 15 ½ years of age can have their health card renewed by the custodial parent/guardian completing and signing the back of the child’s renewal notice and returning it to the ministry in the pre-addressed envelope. You will receive your child’s renewed health card in the mail within approximately six weeks following the receipt of the completed application. Your child’s existing health card should be shown when receiving insured health services until the new card arrives.
The child’s renewal notice will advise the parent/guardian if they must visit an ServiceOntario Centre or Outreach site to provide their own proof of residency and identity to support the renewal of their child’s health card.
If your child’s health card is expiring around the time of his or her 16th birthday, he or she must visit a ServiceOntario centre in person to have their photo and signature captured. Your child must bring acceptable original documents as listed on the Ontario Health Coverage document List .
Health Coverage For People With Disabilities
If you have a disability, you have three options for health coverage through the government.
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Medicaid provides free or low-cost medical benefits to people with disabilities. Learn about eligibility and how to apply.
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Medicare provides medical health insurance to people under 65 with certain disabilities and any age with end-stage renal disease . Learn about eligibility, how to apply and coverage.
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Affordable Care Act Marketplace offers options to people who have a disability, dont qualify for disability benefits, and need health coverage. Learn about the .
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Types Of Health Insurance Plans
When purchasing health insurance, your choices typically fall into one of three categories:
- Traditional fee-for-service health insurance plans are usually the most expensive choice. They offer the most flexibility in choosing health care providers.
- Health maintenance organizations offer lower co-payments and cover the costs of more preventive care. Your choice of health care providers is limited to those who are part of the plan.
- Preferred provider organizations offer lower co-payments like HMOs but give you more options when selecting a provider.
How Do I Report Changes To My Registration Information
Please report changes such as a new address, birth, gender, adoption, death, marriage, divorce, or legal separation to the Insured Benefits Branch. Documentation is required for some changes.
Changing your sex designation on your health card
A Manitoba resident may request the change to their Manitoba health card. This can be done when a health card is issued at birth, or anytime thereafter by contacting Manitoba Health and Seniors Care, Registration and Client Services office.
In order to make the change to your Manitoba health card, please complete an eNotice of Change form and provide a photocopy of your Canadian Birth Certificate.
Dealing with Death
In the event of the death of a Manitoba resident, please report the death to Manitoba Health and Seniors Care. Next of kin of the deceased, an individual holding a power of attorney, or an executor or administrator of the deceaseds estate may inform Manitoba Health and Seniors Care of a death by providing a photocopy of the death certificate or a funeral directors certificate.
If a Manitoba resident dies in another Canadian province, Manitoba Health and Seniors Care will require the next of kin or one of the above mentioned legal representatives to provide the required documentation confirming death to Manitoba Health and Seniors Care, in order to ensure that the deceaseds information is changed in the Manitoba Health and Seniors Care registration database.
Please report changes to your registration information to:
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California Government Health Insurance
Healthcare.Gov & Covered California Enrollment: Receive Government Discounts on Health Care
Government Health Insurance refers to subsidized medical health insurance provided by the government to qualified individuals. These health insurance plans could be free or reduced to provide individuals access to quality health care at an affordable cost.
Government health care refers to the federal or state health insurance exchanges, commonly referred to as exchanges, that provide government subsidies to reduce the cost of insurance premiums. It also refers to government programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE and VA Health Care. This will be more readily understood when broken into three categories.
Understanding The Difference Between The Government Health Plan And Your Blue Cross Extended Health Care Plan
You wouldn’t be the first person to wonder what the difference is between the Extended Health Care coverage provided by Pacific Blue Cross and the Medical Services Plan provided by the BC government.
Government or public plans provide coverage of core health care services such as physician services and hospital acute care. The government health plan is a pre-paid plan that ensures medical coverage is available to all residents of BC as defined by Health Insurance BC. All BC residents are required to enroll with the Medical Services Plan. When a resident enrolls for government coverage, they are billed a monthly premium and issued a CareCard with a personal health number.
Supplementary benefit providers like Pacific Blue Cross provide private insurance for non-core services that are either not covered or only partially covered by the government health plan. Employers, unions and associations can purchase group coverage or individual consumers can purchase coverage for themselves.
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How Do I Get Health Insurance If I Am Self
If you own your own business, you can apply for health coverage through the Marketplace. Your income and household size may qualify you for premium tax credits and other insurance savings. There could also be free or low-cost coverage through CHIP or Medicaid programs in your state. Marketplace plans allow business-owners to insure their children and spouses. Healthcare savings is based on an estimate of net earnings in the year you apply, not the previous years income.
If I Need An Ambulance Is It Covered By Manitoba Health And Seniors Care
Manitoba Health and Seniors Care does not cover land ambulance transports to a hospital or health care facility. Patient costs in Manitoba are currently $250. Patients may have coverage for ambulance transport through private insurance for some or all of this cost.
Manitoba Health and Seniors Care will cover medically-necessary land ambulance inter-facility transports when a patient is being transported between designated health-care facilities for diagnostic tests or treatment, or from a more specialized level of care to another facility closer to home for rehabilitation or recovery.
Eligibility criteria for coverage of inter-facility medical transports includes:
- the patient must be a resident of Manitoba with a valid Manitoba Health card,
- the patient must medically require transportation by ambulance as determined by a physician, and
- the patient is being transferred between designated health-care facilities for diagnostic tests or treatment, or from a more specialized level of care to another facility closer to home for rehabilitation or recovery.
In addition, patients are not eligible for funding under the Manitoba IFT program if one of the following applies:
Out of Province Transport of Manitobans
A Manitoba ambulance may transport you if you require routine medical care in a bordering province to a neighbouring provincial facility. Ambulance costs would be billed at local Manitoba rates.
Air Ambulance Transfers
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How Do I Get An Ohip Card
To get an OHIP card, you must apply by submitting an application with the appropriate documents. To apply, follow these steps:
Want to know more about Ontarios Healths OHIP card? See our OHIP card guide here.
Q My Baby Was Born In An Ontario Hospital But We Are Only Visiting Ontario For A Short Period Can We Use The Ontario Health Coverage Infant Registration Form To Register Our Baby For Ontario Health Coverage While We Are Here
No. Tourists, transients or visitors are not eligible for OHIP coverage. For a child born in Ontario to be eligible for Ontario health insurance coverage they must make their primary place of residence in Ontario, and be physically present in Ontario for at least 153 days in any 12-month period to retain OHIP coverage.
If you are visiting Ontario from another province or territory in Canada, contact your home province/territory regarding health insurance coverage for your baby and any insured services received while visiting Ontario.
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You Wont Need Health Insurance
While the other free coronavirus testing program requires you to have private health insurance to qualify, you will not need insurance to order free tests through the forthcoming government website.
White House officials have repeatedly said the delivery program will be available to all Americans at no cost.
Millions Of Families Just Stopped Getting Monthly Tax Credit Checks
It is not a surprise that the monthly tax credit payments to millions of Americans stopped last week. The American Rescue Plan hatched last March was not intended to go on forever, although some Democrats pushed and are still pushing for a version of it to continue. If they had been able to pass President Bidens Build Back Better Plan, payments would have hit bank accounts over the weekend. But families are starting the first week of 2022 without the financial boost they have relied on for six months.
The tax credit provided up to $1,800 in monthly payments per child aged 5 and younger, and up to $1,500 for kids between ages 6 to 17. The Congressional Budget Office estimates it would cost $185 billion for one year, as Build Back Better proposes, or $1.6 trillion over the next decade if it continued beyond the first year.
Various polls find that while the majority of people who identify as Democrats support the tax credits, Independents and Republicans do not.
By the way, people who got the Advance Child Tax Credit payments will soon get something called a Letter 6475. They will need that document when they file their 2021 tax return. Some will discover that they got more advance payments than they were due, and the IRS will demand they repay the overpayment.
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Q Am I Still Eligible For Ohip If I Temporarily Leave Ontario
You may be out of the province for up to 212 days in any 12-month period and still maintain your Ontario health insurance coverage provided that you continue to make Ontario your primary place of residence.
To maintain eligibility for OHIP coverage you must be an eligible resident of Ontario. This means that you must :
- have an OHIP-eligible citizenship/immigration status and
- be physically present in Ontario for 153 days in any 12-month period and
- be physically present in Ontario for at least 153 days of the first 183 days immediately after establishing residency in the province and
- make your primary place of residence in Ontario.
If you will be out of the province for more than 212 days in any 12-month period, please refer to the Longer Absences from Ontario fact sheet.
Doctors And Nurses Forced To Work Even If They Test Positive
California health authorities announced that hospital staff members who test positive but are symptom-free can continue working. Some hospitals in Rhode Island and Arizona have likewise told employees they can stay on the job if they have no symptoms or just mild ones.
Here is the decision grid that the CDC issued. It offers a sort of sliding scale of when to bring infected workers back according to how dire the need is.
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Should You Use A Rapid At
The two main types of COVID-19 tests are rapid antigen tests and polymerase chain reaction tests. Antigen tests can be taken at home and return results in about 10 to 15 minutes. PCR tests are more accurate but require lab work and generally don’t provide results for at least 12 hours or even up to 5 days.
Both tests typically use nasal swab samples, though some collect saliva. PCR tests administered by a professional may require a nasopharyngeal sample that involves a much deeper nostril swab. Rapid antigen tests usually require swirling a swab in the nostril less than an inch deep.
PCR tests amplify genetic material from the collected sample up to a billion times to detect even the slightest amount of COVID-19 genes, making them highly accurate. They’re also more expensive, usually costing more than $100 apiece.
Rapid antigen tests simply detect the presence of COVID-19 antigens — the substances that prompt your immune system to create antibodies — and work much like home pregnancy tests. If your sample contains COVID-19 antigens, the thin line of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies on the test strip will change color.
Because rapid tests are simply looking for the existence of antigens, they work best when someone is symptomatic. Rapid antigen tests are less successful with early infections and asymptomatic cases. The risk of a false negative is much higher with a rapid test than a false positive.
