If medical is not passed then you will get a PFL letter stating that your son’s condition is a burden on the Canadian health care system. Panel physicians will give an opinion. They look at care required not only today but in the future. If you get PFL, you want to retain a lawyer to respond.
Yes, it's quite possible your application may be rejected due to your son's medical inadmissibility.
This won't be accepted by IRCC. If you end up receiving a PFL because IRCC thinks your son's care falls above the excessive demand threshold, you will have to prove that the care he requires does not in fact exceed this threshold. Saying you will cover these costs through your own savings or insurance will not work because he will qualify for health care coverage in Canada as soon as he's here. You must prove the care he needs falls below the excessive threshold (in the event you receive a PFL).
How old is your son? As mentioned. Private insurance is not factored in. They will look at his long term prognosis too - medication, hospital care, surgeries etc.
You don't need a lawyer right now.
The biggest issue is that he will need a lot of mobility aids or other medical supplies like wheelchairs, medical aids that put children in the standing position for part of the day, aids to help him sit, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, likely aids at school, etc. it is yet to be determined what other issue he may have. There is a good chance he may need surgery to release tendons for example. He may develop scoliosis and need a spinal fusion. There is a very good chance he will need braces for his feet (typically AFOs) which will need to be replaced regularly. All these things are very expensive ($300-500 a pair). You won’t be able to purchase private insurance that will cover physiotherapy. It wouldn’t make sense to sell you a policy given the medical needs of your son. If you work for an employer that allows you to buy into an extended health benefit plan that provides coverage for physiotherapy, medication coverage, medical devices, etc. that would provide some coverage. Finding a job with private health insurance would be a huge consideration if you were ever seeking employment in Canada. There is a cap on the number of appointments that are covered per year or a total dollar amount available to use towards various therapies. Reimbursement may still be only 80% of covered visuals so there can still be an out of pocket expense for visits covered under your private insurance. You would max out the policies part way through the year and have to cover the rest of the appointments out of pocket. Do you have family in Canada? The majority of care falls on parents and when your child becomes an adult getting care from the government will be hard to get and if lucky you get a small amount of service hours every week. The care usually falls on the family. Will you be able to live off of one income in Canada? Given the amount of appointments it will be very difficult for both parents to work full-time unless they have an extremely flexible job that will allow them to work on their own timeline and remotely. For most families in Canada living off of one income is not possible and especially when you will have significant out of pocket expenses out of pocket. If you have no family support in Canada there will likely be no other caregivers to give you a break which is really needed as a caregiver. Having a support system is really important. Getting any respite care is difficult. Some are lucky and may get a weekend a year if there is a charity in the region.
