Waiting for PR while staying in Canada as a TR

[mancha]

Hello, I'm living in Canada (BC) for the last 6 month, while being in Canada I got married to a Canadian citizen, we applied for sponsorship visa last week, I'm also 2 month pregnant, currently I don't have any insurance coverage.
Should this fact speed up the application processing times?
Is there any medicine I can get for free in my situation?
Thank you.

 

[Morena]

Hi! i can talk about my experience. Been pregnant is not going to speed the inmigration process. You will not have health insurance coverage while you are a visitor. You don specify in your post if your app is inland or outland. In BC the health coverage has a waiting time of 3 months i think. If the app is inland and everything goes fine you can get AIP in 6 months, then your husband can start the process with the app for the health insurance. By that time maybe you willl be 8 months pregnant. The pregnancy appointments at the walking clinics are between $80- 100 each without the labs, ultrasounds, ect. I don't know in what city are you living but you can try to find a community pregnancy clinic in your area, they are more cheaper and they can offer u more services. For the entire pregnancy care you can expect to pay about $1,700 aprox (appointments, labs, ultrasounds, prenatal classes, etc.) plus after u have to pay for the delivery cost if you want to have your baby at the hospital. If u get the coverage after you become permanent resident then is a possibility that they can reimburse what you had payed. If you want to know about the delivery costs i suggest you call diferent hospitals.....that's what i did. Also i tried to find free services or free medicines and what i found is that there are some but they are for refugees and that wans't my case.

Good luck, i know is not easy, but not imposible. I did everything without health coverage.

 

[BeShoo]

I'm also 2 month pregnant, currently I don't have any insurance coverage.
Should this fact speed up the application processing times?
Is there any medicine I can get for free in my situation?

Neither being pregnant nor lacking insurance coverage will speed anything up. I thought I saw something about Quebec waiving the 3-month waiting period for pregnancies, but I'm not sure. Maybe B.C. does something like that? You could check.

 

[ivelinan]

Hi Morena,

I'm in the exact same situation. I'm a US citizen, husband is Canadian PR card holder. Got married in April 2012 and filed outland (Buffalo) end of April. In the meantime, I live with him in Montreal under a tourist status. We have not yet gotten any confirmation from CIC about our application b/c it's too soon. Even when we do, it will be another 12 month minimum to get my status.

And we just found out we're pregnant, no coverage. We are thinking of purchasing an US private insurance policy for me and have me travel to Philadelphia (my permanent address) for the check-ups and delivery. But you can see how that's far from easy or ideal, and the delivery date being always an uncertain thing, it's very risky, not to mention unforeseen accidents or complications throughout the pregnancy.

You mentioned $1,700 for medical costs throughout the whole pregnancy, which is not bad at all, and has me feeling very hopeful right now Can you please tell me what city you were in, and how much the delivery was, and if you managed to get reimbursed once you became covered?

I have been trying to locate affordable clinics in Montreal, but so far have not found anything good. Even if you were not in Montreal, could you please give me the contacts of the people you used, and perhaps they can point me in the right direction?

Thanks,
eve

Hi! i can talk about my experience. Been pregnant is not going to speed the inmigration process. You will not have health insurance coverage while you are a visitor. You don specify in your post if your app is inland or outland. In BC the health coverage has a waiting time of 3 months i think. If the app is inland and everything goes fine you can get AIP in 6 months, then your husband can start the process with the app for the health insurance. By that time maybe you willl be 8 months pregnant. The pregnancy appointments at the walking clinics are between $80- 100 each without the labs, ultrasounds, ect. I don't know in what city are you living but you can try to find a community pregnancy clinic in your area, they are more cheaper and they can offer u more services. For the entire pregnancy care you can expect to pay about $1,700 aprox (appointments, labs, ultrasounds, prenatal classes, etc.) plus after u have to pay for the delivery cost if you want to have your baby at the hospital. If u get the coverage after you become permanent resident then is a possibility that they can reimburse what you had payed. If you want to know about the delivery costs i suggest you call diferent hospitals.....that's what i did. Also i tried to find free services or free medicines and what i found is that there are some but they are for refugees and that wans't my case.

Good luck, i know is not easy, but not imposible. I did everything without health coverage.

 

[greenoil]

You guys may need to check out this article:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2012/02/24/bc-motelbaby.html

 

[Creampop]

And we just found out we're pregnant, no coverage. We are thinking of purchasing an US private insurance policy for me and have me travel to Philadelphia (my permanent address) for the check-ups and delivery. But you can see how that's far from easy or ideal, and the delivery date being always an uncertain thing, it's very risky, not to mention unforeseen accidents or complications throughout the pregnancy.
You mentioned $1,700 for medical costs throughout the whole pregnancy, which is not bad at all, and has me feeling very hopeful right now Can you please tell me what city you were in, and how much the delivery was, and if you managed to get reimbursed once you became covered?

My husband and I got married April 7th and filed April 23 LOL just thought it was a funny coincidence anyways, Travel insurance will not cover pregnancy it is considered a pre-exiting condition... you may be able to find some that will but it's going to be expensive.. $1,700 isn't bad but that is not covering delivery which can be $10,000 and upwards depending on delivery.... and most hospital are going to expect some payment up front.

You guys may need to check out this article:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2012/02/24/bc-motelbaby.html

I feel for this woman I really do I been thru labor 3 times and it never got easier but, I'm sorry I can't feel compassion for her not getting health insurance. (for the record I am American and both my Canadian babies were in the states) The website clearly states that filing inland takes quite abit more time then filing outland also that you must receive an AIP before you can get health insurance. It just isn't fair to hand out health care for one reason and not another, I mean why would it be ok to cover someone because they were pregnant but not the person standing next to her that has diabetes without insulin this person would die. They have their rules and regulations for a reason. This couple in my opinion should have taking into consideration the processing time of their app and weather or not they could afford to pay for a pregnancy before getting pregnant. I know it sounds harsh but most of the time the truth is.

Neither being pregnant nor lacking insurance coverage will speed anything up. I thought I saw something about Quebec waiving the 3-month waiting period for pregnancies, but I'm not sure. Maybe B.C. does something like that? You could check.

Yes Quebec waives the 3 month wait but only after you have received your PR status.

I have been in Canada for 3 months now, I have high blood pressure that I take medicine everyday for...I go to my husband's doctor have been added on as family but I have to pay out of pocket for each visit, my husband and I have talked about one more child as our baby is now 7 and I'm well older LOL but due to the fact we could never afford to pay for it... anyways GL to all of you!

 

[aerogurl87]

Well I know in Alberta if your spouse/common law partner is Canadian, you can get provincinal health insurance as a rider on their insurance. Not sure about other provinces. Because that's what my boyfriend and I are going to do.

 

[ivelinan]

I've checked with Quebec Health and Immigration and both confirm that, regardless of their husband / partner's status and coverage, a person cannot get any medical coverage until they have an entry visa of some sort that gives them a resident status... just like that article points out, there is "nothing they can do" while you wait for your application to be processed (and obviously that takes much longer than a pregnancy).

Our options at the moments are:

1. Pay all cash for pre-natal care and birth in Montreal (god only knows how much in total - looking into it now)
2. Go back to the states without my husband and be pregnant alone and give birth there (and then how will I come back with the baby, I have no idea)

If anyone has information on medical institutions / centers in Montreal, which offer affordable pre-natal care and delivery services and accept cash (but not the outrageous prices I’ve been quoted in hospitals, such as $500 for the blood test to verify the pregnancy!!!!), PLEASE post some names and/or numbers of doctors. It would be GREATLY appreciated

My next step is the ultrasound to see how far along we are. I've scheduled with Planned Parenthood in Burlington, VT b/c it's the closest affordable place that I know of (2 hours drive each direction), but after that I really need a local clinic.

Thanks everyone!

Well I know in Alberta if your spouse/common law partner is Canadian, you can get provincinal health insurance as a rider on their insurance. Not sure about other provinces. Because that's what my boyfriend and I are going to do.

 

[Azsereth]

Hi Morena,

I'm in the exact same situation. I'm a US citizen, husband is Canadian PR card holder. Got married in April 2012 and filed outland (Buffalo) end of April. In the meantime, I live with him in Montreal under a tourist status. We have not yet gotten any confirmation from CIC about our application b/c it's too soon. Even when we do, it will be another 12 month minimum to get my status.

And we just found out we're pregnant, no coverage. We are thinking of purchasing an US private insurance policy for me and have me travel to Philadelphia (my permanent address) for the check-ups and delivery. But you can see how that's far from easy or ideal, and the delivery date being always an uncertain thing, it's very risky, not to mention unforeseen accidents or complications throughout the pregnancy.

You mentioned $1,700 for medical costs throughout the whole pregnancy, which is not bad at all, and has me feeling very hopeful right now Can you please tell me what city you were in, and how much the delivery was, and if you managed to get reimbursed once you became covered?

I have been trying to locate affordable clinics in Montreal, but so far have not found anything good. Even if you were not in Montreal, could you please give me the contacts of the people you used, and perhaps they can point me in the right direction?

Thanks,
eve

I haven't heard anything regarding pre-natal/delivery coverage for visitors. Have you considered purchasing a plan in New York or Vermont for pre-natal care? Plattsburgh and Burlington are about a one and two hour's drive from Montreal, respectively. It looks like Plattsburgh has a women's health care clinic. If you needed a local mailing address for the insurance carrier, maybe a P.O. box could suffice. It sounds like a tricky situation...I wish you both the best of luck.

 

[computergeek]

Hello, I'm living in Canada (BC) for the last 6 month, while being in Canada I got married to a Canadian citizen, we applied for sponsorship visa last week, I'm also 2 month pregnant, currently I don't have any insurance coverage.
Should this fact speed up the application processing times?
Is there any medicine I can get for free in my situation?
Thank you.

First, note that health care is provincially administered, so the rules for BC are specific to people in BC.

Note that under the Medicare Protection Act someone is eligible if:

7 (1) A resident must apply to the commission in the manner required by the commission

(a) for enrollment as a beneficiary if not already enrolled,

(b) for enrollment of the resident's spouse as a beneficiary if the spouse

(i) is not living separate and apart from the resident,

(ii) is not enrolled or applying for enrollment as a beneficiary, and

(iii) has not submitted a statement under subsection (1.1),

Source: http://www.bclaws.ca/EPLibraries/bclaws_new/document/ID/freeside/00_96286_01

Thus, one reading of this is that if your spouse is a BC resident, that you would be covered (because it is your spouse's residency that is the governing factor here - not your residency). However, I doubt this is the way that it is interpreted by the provincial authorities as I've read of an inland case in which health care was not extended until AIP - and right now that's requiring eleven months on average. But a plain text reading here certainly reads to me that this is what the statute means - so perhaps it is being mis-applied.

For the record, here is the definition of a resident:

"resident" means a person who

(a) is a citizen of Canada or is lawfully admitted to Canada for permanent residence,

(b) makes his or her home in British Columbia, and

(c) is physically present in British Columbia at least 6 months in a calendar year,

and includes a person who is deemed under the regulations to be a resident but does not include a tourist or visitor to British Columbia;

So, I would suggest you have your spouse apply to add your coverage, include your marriage certificate, demonstrate that you are living together here in BC (joint accounts, both names on the deed/lease/mortgage, car in both names, etc.) They may very well reject it, but by pointing to the "plain language" you begin to build a reasonable case against them.

If you have any insurance already make sure you do EVERYTHING you can to keep it - once pregnant you will not be able to obtain insurance covering the pregnancy again.

When your child is born in BC, he or she is immediately covered (newborns do not have to wait 90 days for coverage) as a Canadian citizen (again, they bend the rules around residency for those under a year old...)

Good luck!

 

[ivelinan]

I haven't heard anything regarding pre-natal/delivery coverage for visitors. Have you considered purchasing a plan in New York or Vermont for pre-natal care? Plattsburgh and Burlington are about a one and two hour's drive from Montreal, respectively. It looks like Plattsburgh has a women's health care clinic. If you needed a local mailing address for the insurance carrier, maybe a P.O. box could suffice. It sounds like a tricky situation...I wish you both the best of luck.

Yes, my first thought was to get insurance for VT b/c it's close enough, but I was told I cannot b/c I'm registered as resident in Philly and can only get insurance for Pennsylvania. Changing my permanent address to Vermont is going to be time consuming and I doubt (based on what I know about getting a State ID for PA) it can be based on a PO Box only. I suppose I can look into it.

Still, our best option is a clinic in Montreal, and the previous post that quoted $1,700 has got me hopeful. Even if it's $5k or $7K all together with the delivery, it's still better than going back to Philly and doing it all alone without hubby.

 

[Creampop]

Of course you want to be with your husband 100% understandable but, worse case scenario... Philly is not far... you can travel during pregnancy... I'm originally from Baltimore and my husband is in Ontario 8 1/2 hr drive not including getting out stretching legs, pee breaks, and border waits or find cheap flights.. southwest runs good deals, have hubby met you this side of border. Use your pregnancy as the reason you will be returning home. doctor appointment card ultrasound appointment etc... you have lots of proof that will move you freely across both sides of the border, PR fee receipt, AOR if/when you get one or the Approval letter itself. The beginning of pregnancy you go to doctors once a month, 6 1/2 7 months it's twice a month, and the last month every week. It isn't impossible I did it thru 2 pregnancies, hubby missed our first being born by a few hrs but that was cus I ended up with emergency c-section, our second everything was perfect. I know having a baby is an important moment but, mommy and baby being in perfect health is more important. GL!

 

[fandv]

Since you're all talking about pregnancy, I'll ask: is the whole duration 38 weeks or 40 weeks?

 

[ivelinan]

Of course you want to be with your husband 100% understandable but, worse case scenario... Philly is not far... you can travel during pregnancy... I'm originally from Baltimore and my husband is in Ontario 8 1/2 hr drive not including getting out stretching legs, pee breaks, and border waits or find cheap flights.. southwest runs good deals, have hubby met you this side of border. Use your pregnancy as the reason you will be returning home. doctor appointment card ultrasound appointment etc... you have lots of proof that will move you freely across both sides of the border, PR fee receipt, AOR if/when you get one or the Approval letter itself. The beginning of pregnancy you go to doctors once a month, 6 1/2 7 months it's twice a month, and the last month every week. It isn't impossible I did it thru 2 pregnancies, hubby missed our first being born by a few hrs but that was cus I ended up with emergency c-section, our second everything was perfect. I know having a baby is an important moment but, mommy and baby being in perfect health is more important. GL!

Yes, indeed, that will be our fall back plan if we don't find affordable clinics here.

So far what I have found out by calling private clinics is that most are not taking new patients (no surprise there), or do not take people without medical coverage. The midwive centers charge $3,700 for the whole pregnancy including birth but that does not include medical tests of any kind. For those they send you to the hospitals they are associated with and you will get billed there separately.

That's all I know for now.

 

[Creampop]

Since you're all talking about pregnancy, I'll ask: is the whole duration 38 weeks or 40 weeks?

Officially 40 weeks but they consider it full term after 37 weeks...