Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
First thing. Health care in Canada is NOT FREE. We all pay for it through taxes, such as income taxes and sales taxes. And taxes on booze and tobacco. So it is NOT FREE. But it is UNIVERSAL That means that any Canadian citizen, or Permanent Resident is included. Period. No exceptions.
Each Province has it's own health care program, with it's own set of regulations. But in general, the rules are similar. To qualify a person coming BACK to Canada, who is a citizen, has to go through a "waiting period " of a couple of months. In Ontario it is 3 months, and then you can apply for your OHIP card. That requires a proof of residence, such as a Ontario drivers licence, or a utility bill with your address on it or a bank statement with your address.
The Canada Pension Plan is ONLY payable if you have paid into it, for a long time, as in decades. So don' t count on that as a potential source of retirement income. The Old Age Pension is slightly different, as you don't pay into it BUT it is calculated based on the number of years that you have lived In Canada.
What is covered in health care ... . Medical care and treatment. Hospital care and out patient care. Doctor's office visits , community nursing care, home Doctor visits and paramedic home care visits. Medical assistive devices. Vaccinations, well baby clinic, elderly care of feet and eyes, and prescribed drugs while in hospital. Prenatal and post natal care. In other words, if it is medically required, it is covered
In Canada there are no "pre existing conditions ". There are no "health networks" and no Doctor is "out of the network. ". There are no "copays ". Doctors and hospitals are paid by the Provincial Ministry of Health, after they bill the MOH. So no Doctor in Canada has to chase patients to get paid, and of course they also don't have to deal with filling out dozens of forms for insurance companies. They also don't have to employ office clerks to do all that paperwork to get paid. My MD has a busy practice and he has one secretary.
Going to see your MD for a office visit? Present your Provincial photo health card. Secretary scans it into the OHIP computer system cross checks with you for your date of birth and current address, and compares that to the computer . Sit down,. See MD, who wants to send you for a bone scan . He makes the appointment right then , by logging into the health network, and requesting an appointment . The computer pops up 3 possible date and times. You choose the one that suits you, he confirms it. Time to do that ? Less than 5 minutes.
Wait times, A simple example. If you have a condition that requires a test or a visit to a specialist, that may take some time. On the other hand if you were just run down by a dump truck... you are a top priority, and the paramedics that treat you are full time , professionally trained and equipped. If you are in a location where an air ambulance is needed, you will get one at no cost to you. The hospital will be equipped to treat you. When I have been in the hospital for surgical procedure , and 4 day recovery period, the only thing that I paid for was the rental TV. We don't get a bill, and most of us have no idea what the dollar cost of our care is.
Who decides what care I get ? My Doctor and I do that. No one else. There are no "death panels " but there are laws that allow a terminal patient to request "assisted death " with the help of a MD. ONLY Doctors who agree with that idea are involved with it. This is the law in Canada.
Is the Canadian health care model perfect ? No it isn't. But believe me that NO Canadian politician would ever suggest getting rid of it. The people would be in the streets with pitchforks and torches. Yes we see it as a basic human right, to be healthy and not have to decide " should I go to the Doctor , or not ". No one here is being forced into bankruptcy by medical bills .
I know that this has been long, but I wanted to try to get as much information into the post as I could and also to answer the specific questions of the OP. And to explain the system here to the other US readers .
The wait period in Ontario is 3 months. You can apply sooner than that, at a Service Ontario location in person. Your OHIP card will come by registered mail, to your home address . It will have a start date and an end date on it.
SO offices are a one stop place to do business with the Government of Ontario. OHIP cards, drivers licences, vehicle registrations, plates, fishing and hunting permits, birth certificates, incorporations, business licences, and so on.
Thanks so much for that breakdown, mapleguy. Aside from family and friends, healthcare is the main reason I will be returning to Canada. I know it isn't free (and I say the same things you said to my CANADIAN friends who say their healthcare is free!), but in Canada I can't be financially devastated by one dire medical diagnosis and treatment the way I could be down here. And higher taxes are no shock to me - I'm in California, in the San Francisco area, where the cost of living is insane.
I just want to retire to a place where the air and water are clean and I don't have to worry about someone pulling a gun and shooting up the neighborhood, a place where people are POLITE. Hell, I still say 'sorry' even when someone walks into ME on the street, and rarely get any acknowledgement at all.
Now my only worry is the safest way to transfer my 401k retirement saving to an RRSP with a few tax hits as possible (and some of the tax consequences can be HUGE). I will probably need to talk to a specialist about that.
About the idea of moving retirement investments to Canada from the USA....
I would strongly advise contacting a Canadian based investment management company. The ins and outs of it are too detailed to go into, here. If you like, contact me by PM and I will give the name of my guy here in Toronto.
US citizens are required to file annual returns to the IRS, regardless of where they live outside of the USA, are you one of those ? Some of them who have lived in Canada for years, recently got a rude shock when the IRS started to get really snarky about that, threatening to go back a decade and "review their status " . Panic ensued.
About where to live... I see that you have connections in the Ottawa area. If you want a nice country town, Smiths Falls, or anywhere in Lanark/ Renfrew county is nice. Or south around Brockville .
Yes, mapleguy, if I had the money I'd love to live in the Perth area. I went to high school in Ottawa, and my dad had a cottage on Lake Kennebec near Arden, so I love all of those areas along old highway 7. I know I'll have to file a US return. Fortunately (!) I'll never have enough money to have to pay anything substantial or anything at all with Foreign Tax Credits. The nausea of the looming paperwork is offset by the thrill of formulating this long-range plan.
First thing. Health care in Canada is NOT FREE. We all pay for it through taxes, such as income taxes and sales taxes. And taxes on booze and tobacco. So it is NOT FREE. But it is UNIVERSAL That means that any Canadian citizen, or Permanent Resident is included. Period. No exceptions.
Each Province has it's own health care program, with it's own set of regulations. But in general, the rules are similar. To qualify a person coming BACK to Canada, who is a citizen, has to go through a "waiting period " of a couple of months. In Ontario it is 3 months, and then you can apply for your OHIP card. That requires a proof of residence, such as a Ontario drivers licence, or a utility bill with your address on it or a bank statement with your address.
The Canada Pension Plan is ONLY payable if you have paid into it, for a long time, as in decades. So don' t count on that as a potential source of retirement income. The Old Age Pension is slightly different, as you don't pay into it BUT it is calculated based on the number of years that you have lived In Canada.
What is covered in health care ... . Medical care and treatment. Hospital care and out patient care. Doctor's office visits , community nursing care, home Doctor visits and paramedic home care visits. Medical assistive devices. Vaccinations, well baby clinic, elderly care of feet and eyes, and prescribed drugs while in hospital. Prenatal and post natal care. In other words, if it is medically required, it is covered
In Canada there are no "pre existing conditions ". There are no "health networks" and no Doctor is "out of the network. ". There are no "copays ". Doctors and hospitals are paid by the Provincial Ministry of Health, after they bill the MOH. So no Doctor in Canada has to chase patients to get paid, and of course they also don't have to deal with filling out dozens of forms for insurance companies. They also don't have to employ office clerks to do all that paperwork to get paid. My MD has a busy practice and he has one secretary.
Going to see your MD for a office visit? Present your Provincial photo health card. Secretary scans it into the OHIP computer system cross checks with you for your date of birth and current address, and compares that to the computer . Sit down,. See MD, who wants to send you for a bone scan . He makes the appointment right then , by logging into the health network, and requesting an appointment . The computer pops up 3 possible date and times. You choose the one that suits you, he confirms it. Time to do that ? Less than 5 minutes.
Wait times, A simple example. If you have a condition that requires a test or a visit to a specialist, that may take some time. On the other hand if you were just run down by a dump truck... you are a top priority, and the paramedics that treat you are full time , professionally trained and equipped. If you are in a location where an air ambulance is needed, you will get one at no cost to you. The hospital will be equipped to treat you. When I have been in the hospital for surgical procedure , and 4 day recovery period, the only thing that I paid for was the rental TV. We don't get a bill, and most of us have no idea what the dollar cost of our care is.
Who decides what care I get ? My Doctor and I do that. No one else. There are no "death panels " but there are laws that allow a terminal patient to request "assisted death " with the help of a MD. ONLY Doctors who agree with that idea are involved with it. This is the law in Canada.
Is the Canadian health care model perfect ? No it isn't. But believe me that NO Canadian politician would ever suggest getting rid of it. The people would be in the streets with pitchforks and torches. Yes we see it as a basic human right, to be healthy and not have to decide " should I go to the Doctor , or not ". No one here is being forced into bankruptcy by medical bills .
I know that this has been long, but I wanted to try to get as much information into the post as I could and also to answer the specific questions of the OP. And to explain the system here to the other US readers .
Questions ? Ask me here.
xxx.
A specialist "may take some time"??? LOL
So Canada is awesome as long as you don't get sick.
Your own link places Canada as number two, while the USA on that list is number seven.
Why don't you ask some of the Canadians on here, about their personal experiences regarding medical wait times here in Canada ? Or are you afraid to learn the facts ?
I said it before and I'll say it again. One catastrophic diagnosis and treatment and my finances could be wiped out here in California. The Canadian system may not be perfect but they are working on it instead of taking sides and trying to score points like our elected officials in Congresss.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
