Interim Federal Health Program and Federal Government

Conservative government: The changes effectively reverse the previous Conservative government 2012 overhaul of the interim federal health program, which covers health care and drug costs for refugees and refugee claimants until they can get access to provincial coverage, according to Hamilton Spectator. Prior to 2012, a person refugee status or medical condition had no bearing on what the federal government would pay for. Starting in 2017, they'll also extend coverage to certain refugees before they even arrive in Canada, including picking up the tab for the medical exams they need to pass in order to move here. "This will help refugees, it will help health-care providers, it will help Canadians," Health Minister Jane Philpott said Thursday. Citing a need to save money and stop the abuse of the system, the Tories instituted a program that allocated coverage based on factors ranging from a refugee country of origin to what conditions needed treatment. One group challenged the move, prompting a scathing 2014 decision from the Federal Court that the new program amounted to "cruel and unusual" treatment and put people lives in danger. Doctors reported the fallout as being everything from pregnant women denied prenatal care to children losing access to asthma medications. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.