Grey County Council is supporting a call on the Government of Ontario to extend a medical program for people without insurance or health cards for six more months.
Last week, council heard a delegation from Supportive Outreach Service (SOS) Clinical Lead Heather Prescott about changes to the program and how they affect vulnerable people.
Prescott says in 2020, at the start of the pandemic, the Ontario Ministry of Health introduced a measure to support Ontario residents without provincial health coverage, allowing hospitals and physicians to bill certain services provided to patients without a health card.
Prescott says, “Very quietly, as of April 1st, that program has ended and it’s unclear at this time what the direct impact a person’s accessing medically necessary care will be. Healthcare is a right. We assume there will be a fee attached to some of these services which will be a huge limitation for those who do not have accessible funds.”
The Ontario government says uninsured people still have access to Community Health Centres. The province’s website lists one location in Grey Bruce, and that is in Markdale.
Prescott told council, the local group, SOS offers access to medical care including addictions medicine, mental health and addictions support and services, and connects people with housing, social services and mental health supports. They also provide basic necessities of living like some clothes, hygiene supplies and tents and sleeping bags.
She says SOS also helps vulnerable people with identification, which is generally required in order to access permanent shelter, open a bank account, get tenant insurance, pay rent and obtain medications.
She told council, “While to some, getting legal identification in Ontario and a health card might seem like a simple visit to Service Ontario, to many of our marginalized individuals who live with mental illness, substance use, be (they) unsheltered or living rough, without a permanent residence and proof thereof, obtaining ID is arduous. It frequently takes three or more months. While certified copies are frequently filed with OW (Ontario Works) and ODSP or social service agencies, original paper copies are frequently required. Out of province and out of country birth certificates are even more complicated to obtain. Obtaining a health card in Ontario requires three unique pieces of identification.”
Prescott adds, “Once obtained, persons who are unsheltered or living rough frequently have their IDs stolen. Additionally, sometimes they’re discarded when tents and personal property are removed from encampment sites.”
Prescott is concerned access to critical services including psychiatry, other specialists, withdrawal management services and Rapid Access Addictions Medication won’t be accessible without a valid health card.
SOS, as well as others, including the Ontario Medical Association, want a new, permanent policy to address the issue.
SOS wants the provincial government to take six months to consult with healthcare stakeholders. They want a new policy developed that draws on the recently ended program’s experience, and reduces stigma and barriers for those without insurance.
A copy of the motion supported by Grey Cuonty council is set to be sent to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, the Minister of Health, and the Association of Municipalities of Ontario.
During the presentation, an SOS member talked about the fire at the Forum building in Hanover in May of 2022, when at least 20 people lost all of their identification. Some of them had significant health and addiction challenges. SOS says it took them months to obtain replacement identification documents, even with the help of wraparound services and daily ID clinics.
Last year, those individuals were covered by the province’s program, but SOS says now that its over, if something like that happened again, those vulnerable individuals would not have the same access to care.