Navigating health insurance

THE BASICS The BC Medical Services Plan (MSP) is the basic health insurance plan, encompassing much of the ‘universal health care’ that Canada is famous for. This plan covers medically necessary doctor visits, surgeries, diagnostic services (like x-rays) and more.

You must register for the MSP if you plan on remaining in BC for more than six months and no longer have coverage under another province’s plan. Enrolling for the MSP is easy — hop on the MSP tab on the Government of BC’s main webpage and you’ll be set in 15 minutes.

Since there is a two-to-three-month wait period for the MSP to kick in, international students are advised to sign up for iMED, while the Global Campus Health Plan is recommended for Canadian citizens and those with permanent residence.

While the MSP is free for domestic students, international students will need to pay a $75 monthly fee.

For students seeking gender-affirming care, the MSP covers many hormonal therapies and some gender-affirming surgeries.

BEYOND THE BASICS Students are automatically signed up for the AMS/GSS health and dental plan and charged an annual fee of $264.63 alongside tuition and fees. This plan covers many health care benefits beyond the MSP, including prescription drugs, vaccinations and visits to a licensed psychologist, as well as vision, dental and travel health coverage. A recent change doubled the amount allocated to students for counselling to $1,000.

If you don’t want to be covered under this plan, you can opt out of it by contacting StudentCare.

HOW TO GET PRESCRIPTION DRUGS The AMS/GSS health and dental plan can cover up to 80 per cent of prescription drug costs. If you are covered by the MSP, you must register for BC Fair Pharmacare to access this coverage.

Fair Pharmacare offers coverage of prescription medications and some medical devices. Hormonal birth control, biologic therapies and ostomy supplies are all covered, at least partially, under this plan. A full list of covered goods is described in the PharmaCare Formulary Search.

This coverage is income-based: the less you earn (*cough* as a student *cough*), the greater the coverage you are entitled to. International students must sign up for a social insurance number (SIN), then use their SIN and an estimated income from the previous year to enrol. U