Urgency sometimes requires administrative flexibility.
Jane, an income assistance recipient, was in urgent need of her heart medication. She only had two days of medication left and was unable to renew her prescription. Her application for Medical Service Plan (MSP) coverage had been denied by Health Insurance BC (HIBC) because HIBC needed proof of her legal name. Jane had provided HIBC with her Quebec baptismal certificate but it was not considered proof of her legal name.
She was told by HIBC that her MSP coverage wouldn’t be activated until she could provide three documents:
- A receipt showing that the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction (MSDPR) had ordered a “new format” birth certificate from Jane’s birth province of Quebec;
- A receipt from Quebec Vital Statistics showing that the birth certificate request had been received; and,
- A note from her doctor confirming the need for her heart medication.
MSDPR had ordered Jane’s “new format” Quebec birth certificate the previous day via regular mail. However, it would be at least five to seven business days before Quebec’s Vital Statistics Agency would receive the request and provide a receipt. Jane was also unable to see her doctor and request a note confirming the urgent need for her medication because she didn’t have MSP coverage.
Jane had called HIBC three times over the course of two weeks in hopes of resolving the issue, including asking to speak to a supervisor, but was told that there was nothing they could do; they couldn’t change her MSP coverage without the required documents.
In urgent need of help, Jane contacted us.
HIBC stated that the issue was with ICBC’s two-step ID verification process , which requires two pieces of identification – one primary and one secondary – to confirm a person’s identity. After further correspondence with HIBC, we were informed that Jane was eligible for benefits based on the baptismal certificate she submitted with her application. HIBC confirmed they would provide Jane with temporary coverage while she waited to receive her Quebec birth certificate and was able to complete the two-step ID process at ICBC.
HIBC sent Jane a letter providing her with her personal health number for her temporary coverage period.