Medical Services Plan (MSP) is the provincial healthcare plan for residents of B.C. You must enrol yourself in MSP as a B.C. resident (including students, and workers on a work permit).

Before you arrive, make sure to obtain private insurance that will cover you for three months + the remainder of the month when you arrive. MSP becomes active 3 months after you arrive in B.C.

For the same reason, when you arrive in B.C., make sure to enrol as early as possible.

To enrol: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/health/health-drug-coverage/msp/bc-residents/eligibility-and-enrolment

You can expect a card mailed to your location from the B.C. government shortly before your MSP activates.

Premiums

Currently, MSP is free of charge. International students may need to pay a fee of $75 a month.

In the years prior, MSP premiums varied between $0 to $75 per month.

Coverage

MSP covers doctor’s visit, emergency care, medically necessary check-ups (such as X-Ray or CT scans), surgeries, and ambulance (you pay a flat $80 for ambulance—including helicopter—with MSP, vs thousands of dollars without).

Dental and vision (except for youth) are not covered. Drugs (prescription or over-the-counter) are not covered. Paramedical services (physiotherapy, massage, etc.) are not covered.

Annual physical checkups, if not deemed medically necessary, are not covered.

For a comprehensive list, visit: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/health/health-drug-coverage/msp/bc-residents/benefits

For life-threatening situations, call 911.

For emergency care, head to your local hospital. You can go to any hospital in B.C., just Google “Emergency Room” or “General Hospital”.

You will be triaged and registered by the nurse, and depending on your situation, receive care in due time.

Note that your experience at the emergency care varies greatly. You might be seen right away for something serious. For anything less life-threatening, expect a wait up to a few hours.

To get non-emergency care, find a walk-in clinic for non-emergency care. Use Google Maps or ask family, friends or co-workers for recommendations. You can also register with a family doctor; this is especially valuable if you have chronicle conditions.

Call in advance to check if the clinic can accept walk-in patients. If you need to make an appointment, you might be able to secure a spot for the same day or in the next few days.

The primary care (your family doctor or walk-in clinic doctor) can prescribe drugs, prescribe lab works, or refer you to another facility for inspection or for a special-care doctor (such as an ENT doctor, an ophthalmologist, etc.).

Ask your questions and follow instructions. Use your common sense.

The governing bodies for healthcare can be disorienting at first, but we try to break them down for you.

Regional authorities

Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) oversees many issues including healthcare administration, hospital and hospice improvement, food safety, etc. They oversee half of Greater Vancouver (together with Fraser Health Authority, or FHA), and coastal BC including Squamish, Whistler, Pemberton, and more.

Fraser Health Authority (FHA) is similar to VCH, overseeing the other half of Greater Vancouver including Burnaby, Surrey, and cities to the east. They also oversee cities and towns as east as Hope. Anything further east is with Interior Health.

There are three other regional authorities that oversee parts of BC:

• Interior Health
• Northern Health overseeing Northern BC
• Island Health overseeing Vancouver Island and part of coastal BC

They functions similarly with VCH and FHA, each covering a different region of BC.

Provincial Health Services Authority

Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA) coordinates other aspects of health and safety, not covered by the regional authorities. For example, they oversee doctor and nurse payrolls at hospitals.

They cover the entire province but they are not supervision of the regional authorities.

Ministry of Health

Ministry of Health (MOH) is part of Canada federal government. They provide directions and coordinate resources for national matters.

Canada Food Inspection Agency

Canada Food Inspection Agency (FCIA) is responsible for safety of packaged food mostly.

If you suspect healthcare concerns at a restaurant, report to VCH or FHA instead.