The first thing you should do when moving into a new place is to purchase health coverage and discover a nearby medical facility. After settling in Canada, it is a crucial initial step to obtain a valid health card.
To get Medical Service Insurance (MSI) health care in Nova Scotia, you must register yourself first. Submit your application in person after downloading the form. An online submission option isn’t available. You must attach the required documents with the application form before submission. Otherwise, it may not get approval. You may get a card after 10 days.
You may have private health coverage, which is in effect as soon as you arrive in the nation. While you stand in line for the processing and delivering your health card, private coverage might be effective for you.
Continue reading to discover more about the extended health care, coverage for travellers entering and leaving Canada, and prescription plan below. Get ready, as we are going to dive into details.
Contents ShowDespite being offered nationwide, each province manages health services locally. In Canada, PR holders and newcomers have the right to an ongoing approach to publicly supported healthcare.
Nova Scotia provides health services to its residents via a Medical Services Insurance (MSI) program. This program is available to all lawful citizens of Nova Scotia, and the Nova Scotia Health Authority is responsible for managing the MSI program.
The MSI program covers the following clinically essential services:
But these services have minor limitations. This coverage includes all medically required procedures that may occur in any hospital environment, blood tests, and some diagnoses.
If you have a family member under 14 years of age, then you may avail of dental treatments under the MSI service of Nova Scotia. Moreover, seniors above 65 and minors of age 10 may get their eye checkup once in two years under the MSI program.
Unfortunately, the MSI program does not provide coverage for some lengthy paramedical or elective services. The following services are excluded from the Nova Scotia MSI program:
Newcomers may get Medical Services Insurance exactly on the day when they arrive here in Nova Scotia. And you cannot deny that the processing time of a medical card application is not too lengthy.
For these reasons, we must advise you that get private health insurance during your initial few weeks in Canada. It would help you if you ever require medical aid in Nova Scotia. Plus, it might save you from the possibly expensive expenses of medical treatments.
The following are the eligibility criteria for a Nova Scotia Health Card:
You are not eligible to have an MSI health card if you remain out of the city or province for more than seven months for any reason.
You must show your Nova Scotia health card, a form of identity document, to obtain medical care. Following are some basic steps that you must follow while signing up for Nova Scotia MSI:
You can visit your local newcomer services organization for further details. You may also go to MSI Portal for getting additional information about getting a health card. Following is the method through which you may apply for a health card:
Walk to MSI Registration and Enquiry Department to submit your application.
You cannot apply online for medical health care in Nova Scotia.
You can update your health card if necessary by having the following options:
Based on your birth month, your health card expires right after the completion of four years. You will get a renewal notification three months before the expiration date. You must fill out the health card renewal form, attest it by signing, update the information if necessary, and send it back to the office.
MSI receives your paperwork, processes this application, and finally approves it. Soon, you get a renewed health card from Nova Scotia. Here, you can obtain the Renewal Form, download it, fill, and send it to the MSI office.
You should contact MSI if your health card is broken, robbed, or lost. In this case, you have to pay about $10 to replace your broken or lost health card.
Suppose you want to relocate from one place to other in Nova Scotia. In that case, it is necessary to provide all the basic and updated information regarding your address to the MSI office. It’s necessary to avoid any confusion in case someone may post your health card if it gets lost.
Moreover, this updated information may also include the following:
If you want to do the whole procedure online, you can do by clicking on ‘Change Your Address’.
You must reach out MSI registration office to apply for a health card as a newbie. You can apply via:
You can also make in-person appointments at the head office in Dartmouth. You cannot get your health card application form online, so you have to talk with the Nova Scotia MSI Registration Office workers.
You may call the MSI registration office at 902-496-7008 for details. It’s crucial to get some information regarding documents and other paperwork. As a new immigrant, you will face some obstacles finding the office, so we recommend that you find out the right direction before heading towards the office.
All Nova Scotians who live there year-round (183 days) are eligible to enjoy the facilities of a Health Card. You can learn more about the health care coverage of Nova Scotia health card below:
Nova Scotia does not provide routine dental care as part of its dental coverage. To help those who qualify, it does provide a few dental programs:
A worthful tip!
Before considering the exceptional situation program, you must rely on your private health insurance card.
The residents of Nova Scotia can avail several public medications through pharmacare (MSI) programs. They are made to assist citizens with paying for specific services and prescription medications. You can check out the following pharmacare programs:
MSI offers additional health coverage through initiatives like:
All Canadian provinces except Quebec signed the Reciprocal Billing Agreement. The benefit of this agreement is that whichever province of Canada you visit, you will get medical services by showing a Nova Scotia health card. Everything will be refunded to your home province.
If the medical care provider asks you to pay for the treatments, don’t forget to provide MSI with the receipt for review. If you intend to leave Nova Scotia for three months, the health card scenario will be different.
Please take advice from MSI via msi@medavie.ca or contact the office. You may get information on the following:
Depending on the cause of your absence and the situations surrounding it, the duration and scope of your insurance card may change. Only unusual situations result in payment for prescription medications bought outside your province.
MSI will give you insured health services for emergency medical treatment if you travel outside Canada. Canadian resources pay for:
The following services are not covered by the MSI program when outside of Canada:
If you plan to go outside of the province, then we must advise you to obtain a Travel Health Plan for your time away to cover additional treatments.
The following services are excluded from MSI coverage even though they are medically essential services:
Once you submit your application, it takes about ten working days to obtain your health card via mail after approval of the application. You might be able to get assistance from your local community organization or newbie service if you have any queries about how to get an MSI card in Nova Scotia.
The Nova Scotia family pharmacare program is a government medical services insurance program created to assist Nova Scotians with the expense of prescription medications. Suppose your family has no health coverage or cannot pay for the prescription expenses; you may get assistance with the pharmaceutical expenses.
This program is open to all the residents of Nova Scotia having valid MSI coverage. It would be best if you committed to annually supplying the Canada Revenue Agency with information on your family and proof of your family’s earnings in addition to holding a health card.
The Nova Scotia formulary lists prescription medicines, services, and other associated supplies that a family pharmacare program provides.
A hospital insurance program called Nova Scotia Seniors’ pharmacare helps seniors who qualify for their prescription medications’ expenses. Anyone who wants to be eligible for this assistance must:
Your Nova Scotia Medical Service Insurance (MSI) card may become your pharmacare card when you sign up for this program. The following are the factors depending on which you can pay your yearly premium:
These are the yearly sentencing guidelines for the copayment and premium that Nova Scotia pays. You can also use the online calculator to calculate what will be your annual premium if you are at your annual income into the box.
Students in Nova Scotia have the same medical coverage. If you satisfy the following criteria, you may get coverage of MSI:
Check Out The Nova Scotia Health Card | How to make health card in Nova Scotia, Canada | MSI Card | In2Can Vlogs:
No, you can’t have health cards in 2 provinces. You can avail health card from one province only at a time. Whenever you try to apply for a new card in any other province, a notification is sent to the head office of the province where you live.
So, you don’t need to have a health card separately in other provinces. If you plan to shift permanently from one province to another, you may use your previous province’s health card until your new card isn’t in your hand.
Yes, you can have health care in two provinces at a time. For example, if you live alone in one province and your family is in another. Naturally, if you get some serious ailment, you may receive your first aid from your home province, and for further care, you may go to the province where your family lives.
This way, you can have health care from two provinces as your health record belongs to your home province. You may get medication from a suitable province under your health card. There is another situation:
Some health services are coordinated by some areas, including Maritimes. You may move to another province for treatment. Your medical treatment must be deemed medically required and unavailable locally to receive care outside your jurisdiction.
It requires 10 working days to get a Nova Scotia health card. It is not a long duration like another province. Nor do you have to wait for a longer period of three months to make it a home province.
Nova Scotia offers a straightforward and brief processing time for your application. This is why newbies choose Nova Scotia as their new home province. You have to prove that you intend to live here for at least 183 days in Nova Scotia.
Now you know that Nova Scotia does not offer a waiting duration that stops newbies from receiving health coverage during the initial days like other provinces in Canada. However, since applying for an MSI card may take time, it’s always a good idea to plan ahead by looking for private health coverage.
Otherwise, you may have to pay big money to pay medical bills if you become hurt, unwell, or ill. You may avail of any type of medical services in this dense province. Nova Scotia will never disappoint you in providing health, employment, study, and entertainment services.
So what are you waiting for? Go, and pack your bags for Nova Scotia. You may trust OnTheMoveCanada to discuss any issue regarding getting a personal health card and MSI coverage before shifting to Nova Scotia. Take Care!