Canada's 'snowbirds,' residents who take to warmer climates in winter, have won back their out-of-country medical coverage in a court decision that will reinstate coverage for medical bills on the road.
The decision applies to Ontario residents whose coverage under the Ontario Health Insurance Act incluided an Out of Country Travellers Program that was terminated by the Ontario government on January 1, 2020. The unanimous court ruled that the Province's executive had to authority to do so. Ontario is the only province whose government took such a step.
The Canadian Snowbird Association had filed the suit; the decision will now restore reimbursement of $200 and $400 a day for emergency inpatient services and $50 for emergency outpatient. Most snowbirds also buy travel medical insurance because the coverage is not comprehensive, but the suit argued, among other grounds, that loss of the coverage would cause a rise in cost for travel medical.
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