Waiting for OHIP for 70 year old father, private insurance?

[bhayes]

My father is a Canadian citizen and resided in Ontario most of his life but the past 7 years or so he's been in the US. He'll be moving to Ontario in 2 weeks and I understand from the other posts in this thread that the 3 month OHIP waiting period starts on his landing date or when he moved to Ontario. Since he'll be driving, I imagine he should get a receipt or proof of entry to be used for the OHIP application?

Also, I understand that to cover his health insurance during the 3 month waiting period, he'll need to get traveler insurance from a Canadian company as posted from another thread. I've checked kanetix.ca and I'm getting quotes for around $300-600/mo. It's too bad these quotes seem to only cover 80% of certain things like prescriptions. Regarding coverage, is it possible to get 100% supplemental coverage for this 3 month period and/or for when he has OHIP? I'm worried that if his prescriptions end up costing a lot he'll be more reluctant to get them filled.

One more thing regarding the OHIP application. The plan was to stay in a hotel or airbnb for the first couple of months until we can find him a reasonable apartment to sign a lease. Will this cause an issue for the OHIP application?

Sorry for all the questions, I'm just trying to get as much in order as possible so there aren't any surprises.

Thanks!

 

[scylla]

My father is a Canadian citizen and resided in Ontario most of his life but the past 7 years or so he's been in the US. He'll be moving to Ontario in 2 weeks and I understand from the other posts in this thread that the 3 month OHIP waiting period starts on his landing date or when he moved to Ontario. Since he'll be driving, I imagine he should get a receipt or proof of entry to be used for the OHIP application?

Also, I understand that to cover his health insurance during the 3 month waiting period, he'll need to get traveler insurance from a Canadian company as posted from another thread. I've checked kanetix.ca and I'm getting quotes for around $300-600/mo. It's too bad these quotes seem to only cover 80% of certain things like prescriptions. Regarding coverage, is it possible to get 100% supplemental coverage for this 3 month period and/or for when he has OHIP? I'm worried that if his prescriptions end up costing a lot he'll be more reluctant to get them filled.

One more thing regarding the OHIP application. The plan was to stay in a hotel or airbnb for the first couple of months until we can find him a reasonable apartment to sign a lease. Will this cause an issue for the OHIP application?

Sorry for all the questions, I'm just trying to get as much in order as possible so there aren't any surprises.

Thanks!

Yes - it's correct that your father will not be covered for his first three months in Canada and should purchase private insurance.

It's generally not possible to obtain insurance that provides 100% coverage. Make sure you read the fine print of whatever insurance you are buying to understand which prescriptions are covered and if there is a deductible. There are typically exclusions, minimums, maximums, etc.

The hotel / airbnb shouldn't be an issue. However he should have a permanent address by the time he applies for the OHIP card. He won't receive a receipt of any kind when he enters Canada. If needed, he will need to prove residency through bills, receipts, etc. once he's in Canada.

 

[canuck78]

Would probably make more sense to pay cash for regular medications and get emergency converage. Many policies won't cover preexisting conditions or Rxs. He also should look into getting a 3 month supply of medication in the US if it is possible. No matter when you sign up during the first 3 months the start date will be the same as long as you have proof of your landing date. Makes sense to only apply once you have your permanent address. If you are in Toronto I would start looking at apartments. The vacancy rates are very low so finding a good apartment can be difficult unless you have a healthy budget. Finding a family doctor can also be difficult so I would start the search early and make your initial appointment so you have it scheduled when your coverage starts. You will likely have to pay for an appointment to get his regular prescriptions.

 

[bhayes]

Thank you for your replies. We are checking if we can get a 3 month supply of prescriptions. For OHIP, is it sufficient to show a bank account statement at a permanent address, say if he were living with relatives at the time of application? I'm asking because in such a scenario, his name wouldn't be on any utilities or the lease.

I'm still a bit confused on proof of landing date if he's driving through the border. Without a boarding pass or receipt at the border, I imagine the only other proof would be GPS coordinate history or something like a gas station receipt?

Agreed on finding a place. I've been looking and his budget is $800/mo. Airbnb's tend to be within this budget so hopefully that works for the first while until he gets his own apartment. I'm a bit worried about leases since he's retired and doesn't have a lot of income. I don't think I would want to put myself in a position of acting as cosigner either for liability reasons. I did find some apartments for $1100/mo and my brother and I could kick in the difference to make it work but ideally there would be a short term rental for 2-3 months fully furnished with WiFi and utilities paid for under $1000/mo. I also find Kijiji is a bit difficult to navigate plus I'm worried about scams.

canuck78: I assume for emergency coverage, you mean some private insurance like Blue Cross Ontario travelers insurance or are you thinking about a different class?

 

[canuck78]

Thank you for your replies. We are checking if we can get a 3 month supply of prescriptions. For OHIP, is it sufficient to show a bank account statement at a permanent address, say if he were living with relatives at the time of application? I'm asking because in such a scenario, his name wouldn't be on any utilities or the lease.

I'm still a bit confused on proof of landing date if he's driving through the border. Without a boarding pass or receipt at the border, I imagine the only other proof would be GPS coordinate history or something like a gas station receipt?

Agreed on finding a place. I've been looking and his budget is $800/mo. Airbnb's tend to be within this budget so hopefully that works for the first while until he gets his own apartment. I'm a bit worried about leases since he's retired and doesn't have a lot of income. I don't think I would want to put myself in a position of acting as cosigner either for liability reasons. I did find some apartments for $1100/mo and my brother and I could kick in the difference to make it work but ideally there would be a short term rental for 2-3 months fully furnished with WiFi and utilities paid for under $1000/mo. I also find Kijiji is a bit difficult to navigate plus I'm worried about scams.

canuck78: I assume for emergency coverage, you mean some private insurance like Blue Cross Ontario travelers insurance or are you thinking about a different class?

$800/month for an airbnb seems pretty unlikely although maybe in a small town. Your father has a pretty tight budget so hopefully he is looking at smaller cities. Yes I was referring to an emergency medical insurance plan through something like blue cross. Depending on his current health some conditions may still be excluded. Getting a policy for regular car will likely be extremely expensive since insurance policies are in the business of making money.

 

[bhayes]

You're right - $800/mo is a low budget. I wish there were nursing homes or assisted living units that were priced around $1200/mo as I'd be fine with kicking in some extra to help make it work. Not having much luck searching rental property...

 

[scylla]

You're right - $800/mo is a low budget. I wish there were nursing homes or assisted living units that were priced around $1200/mo as I'd be fine with kicking in some extra to help make it work. Not having much luck searching rental property...

Nursing homes / assisted living starts at around $1,800 per month and goes up from there if you want a private room (around $2,400 for a private room).

 

[canuck78]

Nursing homes / assisted living starts at around $1,800 per month and goes up from there if you want a private room (around $2,400 for a private room).

Those are subsidized facilities. Private retirement homes start at around 5k/month I believe.

 

[YVR123]

Those are subsidized facilities. Private retirement homes start at around 5k/month I believe.

Last time I checked, private care homes start from $5000 to $15,000 a month excluding extra medical supplies and equipment.

 

[canuck78]

You also need to be deemed at a nursing care level health-wise to qualify for publicly funded nursing homes.