Global Affairs Canada advanced $3 million to cover workers' medical expenses
Another issue has been raised about Canada Life’s health coverage for Canadian government workers.
Workers who are posted or travelling outside of Canada are being left to wait for months to be reimbursed for the money they spend to cover their medical expenses, according to a CBC report.
Specifically, Global Affairs Canada (GAC) has advanced $3 million to employees to cover medical expenses, said Professional Association of Foreign Service Officers (PAFSO) president Pamela Isfeld. PAFSO represents employees posted overseas including those at embassies and consulates.
That figure was up from the $1.8 million GAC had told CBC that it had given for workers’ medical expenses just before January ended.
"That money is supposed to be used to advance Canada's interests abroad, to protect Canadians abroad, to help them with things that they need help with," said Isfeld in the CBC report.
"It should not be covering the rear end, frankly, of a contractor that is just not up to the job."
According to CBC, Isfeld noted the union could go to court to compel the government to fix the problem or bring in another insurance provider "until they get their act together."
The Public Service Health Care Plan (PSHCP), the largest health care plan in the country, switched providers from Sun Life Financial to Canada Life Assurance Company on July 1, 2023. The move affected over 1.7 million federal public servants, retirees and their dependents.
As part of the switch, Canada Life subcontracted MSH International to handle all overseas claims as of July 1, 2023, both for emergency travel medical coverage and comprehensive coverage for those posted overseas by GAC, noted CBC.
Late in October 2023, a parliamentary committee started on government operations and estimates adopted a motion to examine what is described as the “Canada Life fiasco,” which is looking into:
- quality of insurance coverage
- efficiency and effectiveness of new insurance plan, particularly online claims and telephone service
- mechanisms used by Public Services and Procurement Canada to award the contract
- measures that will be put in place to "restore the situation."
- Two-thirds (66 per cent) of working Canadians who have access
Poor service from MSH International
MSH International has been providing poor service, according to one worker.
Sonia Hooykaas works for GAC and has been posted in the U.K. since November 2020. Since last July, she has submitted $57,500 worth of eligible claims but has only been paid around $35,000.
"I'm more or less where I [was] before, only with a bunch of money that doesn't jive with all the paperwork that they gave me," she told CBC. "It's a part-time job."
Hooykaas noted that before the switch in medical insurance providers, she rarely encountered problems with Sun Life's international subcontractor, Allianz Global Assistance.
"At least with Allianz you actually got somebody on the phone. There was a dedicated telephone number. I never waited for longer than five to 10 minutes on hold to talk to somebody," she told CBC.
Two-thirds (66 per cent) of working Canadians who have access to employer-provided benefits rate their overall wellbeing as good or excellent, compared to 49 per cent of those without these benefits, according to a previous report.
How MSH International is improving service
But MSH is working on improving its service, CBC reported, citing information on MSH's website. And as of two weeks ago, the average claim processing time was 48 days, down from 59 the week before, according to the report.
Meanwhile, MSH has acknowledged that “the member experience has not met the expected level of service for which we strive.
To improve its service, MSH is adding more agents to the contact centre to reduce contact centre wait times.
MSH is also working to make the claims processing process faster. The provider is also working on an improved MSH PSHCP Member Portal.
More than half (51%) of HR professionals and recruiters say medical/dental coverage is the most effective benefit for attracting new candidates, according to a previous report.
