Family caught up in MSP coverage red tape
With baby needing surgery, Nanaimo dad says they can't wait out eligibility period
A Nanaimo family whose baby son needs urgent surgery for a congenital heart defect says they are worried they may have to delay it or pay out of pocket as they wait for MSP coverage.
The couple's son Alessio was born eight months ago in Ecuador while his parents were visiting family.
“My wife is Ecuadorean, so we planned to stay in Ecuador for about a year,” said Alessio's father, Colby Zuback. “We always planned to come back to Canada.”
Zuback, who is from Nanaimo, met his wife Nicole while he was attending university in Spain. When Zuback's wife became pregnant, the couple decided to have the baby in Ecuador to be near her family. But within weeks of Alessio's birth, the world was in lockdown due to COVID-19. The family put their plans to return to Canada on hold for a few months, reluctant to travel with an infant during the pandemic.
Zuback said that by the summer they had decided it was safe enough to travel and booked flights for August, but they were cancelled.
In the meantime, during a routine checkup, a doctor noticed Alessio had an abnormally strong heartbeat.
They were referred to a cardiologist at the end of September, and the little boy was diagnosed with congenital heart disease.
“I don't understand how they missed it,” said Zuback. “This is something that should have been seen in pregnancy.”
Alessio's heart defect is called double inlet left ventricle and affects the valves and chambers of the heart. He'll need three surgeries. For most babies, the first one is scheduled shortly after birth, with a second, major surgery happening at about five or six months of age.
“He's already gone too long without it,” said Zuback.
After the couple was finally able to return to Canada on Oct. 6, doctors scheduled Alessio's first surgery for Oct. 30.
But the challenges continued. Because the family has been away from the province for more than six months, they must wait three months to be eligible for Medical Services Plan coverage. In March, the waiting period was eliminated so Canadians returning home during the pandemic would have immediate access to care. It was reinstated again Aug. 1.
At the time, B.C. Health Minister Adrian Dix defended the waiting period, calling it “fundamental to the way that we run our public health care system.”
“We have a 90-day rule, which means people cannot just come here and on the first day get health care, and get that health care at the cost of everyone in B.C.,” he said.
But advocates say the waiting period serves no real purpose, as B.C. already restricts who is eligible for MSP.
“If you actually qualify for MSP, why must you wait?” asked Omar Chu, a member of Sanctuary Health, a group that advocates for health care regardless of immigration status. He said many people are forced to choose between paying for care they can't afford or going without it and suffering serious health consequences.
Shira Goldenberg, an assistant professor in the health sciences faculty at Simon Fraser University, called the idea that B.C. has universal health care a “misconception.”
A large number of B.C. residents don't have access to health care, including those who work in agriculture, child care and the restaurant industry, she said, pointing out that the issue is “highly racialized.”
“It sends the message to immigrants that they are only entitled to a second tier of care,” she said.
Zuback said he has spent hours filling out paperwork, asking the Health Ministry to waive the waiting period so Alessio can have surgery. During the election campaign, he has been unable to ask his MLA for help.
“We've done everything we can, but no one has responded. I'm faxing letters every week,” he said.
While Zuback has a job lined up at a physiotherapy clinic in Nanaimo, he said he also has student loans and can't afford to pay for the surgery out of pocket.
“The surgery should have happened in the first week of his life,” said Zuback. “He can't wait.”