B.C.'s medical watchdog seeking injunction against Telus Health program
B.C.'s medical watchdog seeking injunction against Telus Health program
British Columbia's Medical Services Commission has applied for an injunction against a Telus Health program, alleging its billing model contravenes the province's Medicare Protection Act.
The LifePlus service, which was reviewed by the commission earlier this year, has been described as creating a "two-tiered" system by charging for services that should be covered under the B.C.'s medical services plan.
Health Minister Adrian Dix announced the application for an injunction Thursday.
"Earlier this year, I directed the Medical Services Commission to review Telus Health following complaints made by the public of illegal extra billing," he said at a news conference held Thursday afternoon.
"It is very important to uphold the Medicare Protection Act, which is in place to preserve our publicly managed and fiscally sustainable health-care system for British Columbia. Access to necessary medical care should be based on need and not an individual's ability to pay."
The findings of the review are not publicly available and the BC Greens have demanded they be released.
A representative from Telus Health says the company was blindsided.
“To not, at this point, be given an opportunity to even have a discussion, to even get a response on our inquiries, to say, 'If there’s something that you think is not right let us know, we will fix it.' We’re blind right now on that, and I think that’s very disrespectful and quite a shame,” said Juggy Sihota, vice president of consumer health for Telus Health.
Dix doesn’t see it that way.
“The process requires an exchange of information and information received, and it has done over the last number of months with Telus Health and others,” said Dix.
One expert tells CTV News the timing of the injunction application comes when the province is facing a severe doctor shortage.
“These type of two-tier-health-care models, where access is based on your wallet and the ability to pay, is going to be moving and siphoning health-care providers and – in this case – primarily family physicians, out of a system that’s based on need,” said Andrew Longhurst, a health policy researcher at Simon Fraser University.
Telus Health claims it isn’t knowingly breaking any rules.
“The LifePlus program is a small, preventative service,” said Sihota. “We do not charge for primary care services with our LifePlus service. Our fee is preventative health, uninsured services like dieticians, kinesiologist, health and wellness services.”
Sihota says LifePlus has approximately 4,000 users and 25 doctors.
Dix says the Medical Services Commission will argue its case for an injunction in the coming weeks, but wouldn’t provide any details of the filings as it’s now before the court.
Telus Health, meanwhile, isn’t backing down.
“We welcome the legal proceedings,” said Sihota. “We welcome the opportunity to make sure that the right facts and details are shared. So expect that.”
A gay man is taking the federal government to court, challenging the constitutionality of a policy restricting gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned.
Dominic Barton, the former global managing director of McKinsey & Company, says he had no involvement in federal contracts awarded to the firm in recent years.
Australia is removing the monarchy from its bank notes. The nation's new $5 bill will feature an Indigenous design rather than an image of King Charles III. But the king is still expected to appear on coins that currently bear the image of the late Queen Elizabeth II.
A Quebec woman said she was very surprised to find her stolen Audi had been used in what’s being described as an “absolutely insane” Ontario mall robbery.
When the opera 'La Flambeau' premieres next week in Montreal, Black performers will be front and centre in an artistic medium where they have historically been under-represented.
A suicide bomber who killed 101 people at a mosque in northwest Pakistan this week had disguised himself in a police uniform and did not raise suspicion among guards, the provincial police chief said on Thursday.
Top European Union officials arrived in Kyiv on Thursday for talks with Ukrainian officials as rescue crews dug through the rubble of an apartment building in eastern Ukraine struck by a Russian missile, killing at least three people and wounding about 20 others.
A homicide investigation is underway on Quadra Island, B.C., after a 39-year old woman was found dead in what investigators believe was a targeted killing.
Alberta's former chief medical officer of health has landed a new role in British Columbia. Dr. Deena Hinshaw was named a deputy provincial health officer for B.C. on Wednesday.
Calgary police are looking for suspects involved in an altercation that lasted for approximately an hour, spanned several communities and ended with a gun being fired.
Tsuut'ina Nation Police Service officials are encouraging any local victims to come forward following the arrest of actor Nathan Lee Chasing Horse in Las Vegas on sex assault charges.
A large crowd of around 700 students, faculty members and Lethbridge residents came out on Wednesday to protest a planned speech by Frances Widdowson at the University of Lethbridge that didn't take place.
A gay man is taking the federal government to court, challenging the constitutionality of a policy restricting gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned.
A Quebec woman said she was very surprised to find her stolen Audi had been used in what’s being described as an “absolutely insane” Ontario mall robbery.
After an extremely mild month of January, the province is bracing for a blast of arctic air that will move in tonight and last until Saturday. Environment and Climate Change Canada has issued extreme cold warnings that covers most of the province with wind chills expected to be between -38 and -42 across the South and -50 across Northern Quebec.
Longueuil police (SPAL) arrested Gilles Croteau, 57, in the Saint-Hubert borough on Jan. 24 after an investigation that led to 31 arrests across Quebec for various sex offences, including child pornography possession and production.
The organization regulating medical care and services in Manitoba is apologizing for racism directed towards Indigenous people when accessing health care in the province.
A gay man is taking the federal government to court, challenging the constitutionality of a policy restricting gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned.
A new 911 dispatch system in New Brunswick means that now fire departments aren’t getting dispatched to all medical calls leaving residents waiting and first responders in the dark.
Wiarton Willie has predicted an early spring! The groundhog in South Bruce Peninsula didn't see his shadow at 8:07 a.m. on Thursday morning, meaning sprin gis on the way.
Bostwick Road has reopened following a serious crash on Wednesday evening. Around 7:20 p.m., emergency crews responded to the scene in south London for the incident involving two vehicles.
Wiarton Willie has predicted an early spring! The groundhog in South Bruce Peninsula didn't see his shadow at 8:07 a.m. on Thursday morning, meaning sprin gis on the way.
A Quebec woman said she was very surprised to find her stolen Audi had been used in what’s being described as an “absolutely insane” Ontario mall robbery.
Wiarton Willie made his prediction his spring prediction Thursday morning at 8:07 a.m. The groundhog did not see his shadow, meaning we could get an early spring.
A hearing is underway to determine if Udo Haan is not criminally responsible for the death of his wife Edra Haan, who was found in the aftermath of the 2018 house explosion in Kitchener, Ont.
