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OHIP Waiting Period for Private Sponsored Refugees
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mnzur Posts: 1
Posted On: 9/30/2015
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Hi,
We are privately sponsored refugees (Group of Five category) and have recently resettled in Ontario.
A/c to the Ontario Ministry of Health's website, some people are exempted from the 3-month waiting period and one of those are refugees (Convention Refugees), see http://www.health.gov.on.ca/en/public/publications/ohip/ohip_waiting_pd.aspx
Is anyone exempt from the waiting period?
Yes; these include, but are not limited to:
newborn babies born in Ontario;
OHIP-eligible adopted children under the age of 16;
protected persons (Convention Refugees and persons in need of protection); and
people from another province/territory who move directly into a long-term care facility in Ontario, or who require admittance into a long-term care facility within 3 months of arrival in Ontario.
So my question is are recently resettled privately sponsored refugees covered from day one or they also have to wait three month?
We went to the Service Ontario and they said you are not refugees, you are permanent resident so you won't be covered until three month elapses.
What options do we have? How are we going to access health services during these months? We are unable to afford them ourselves (even our air ticket's fare was paid by Government of Canada.)
We are currently in Burlington, ON.
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Moderator Moderator Posts: 4075
Posted On: 10/7/2015
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Hello,
Thank you for sharing your situation and question with us.
We can appreciate that you would be concerned about this and would like to resolve this situation.
According to the Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) Guide to the Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program – 2. Private sponsorship of refugees program,
Coverage of health-care costs: Depending on the province of destination, the waiting period for provincial health insurance coverage can be as much as 90 days for new permanent residents. However, in most jurisdictions, resettled refugees may be eligible from the day of arrival. Privately sponsored refugees should apply for provincial or territorial health insurance as soon as possible.
The Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP) provides limited, temporary health coverage for specific groups of people in Canada. The coverage is paid by CIC. [...]
Privately sponsored refugees who are not yet eligible for provincial or territorial health insurance may be covered by the IFHP for physician and hospital care during the waiting period.
and
The applicable local CIC office in Canada will:
-provide the sponsoring group with the names of agencies offering immigrant support services;
-register the refugees for the Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP); and
-monitor the settlement of the refugees after arrival.
You may want to contact the nearest Settlement Service for some additional information and some assistance with your situation.
I hope this information is helpful. Please let us know if you have further questions and if there is any follow up to your question/situation.
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Anna
Settlement.Org Content and Information/Referral Specialist, CIRS
Settlement.Org
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