He has Wilson’s disease, a genetic disorder that puts him at risk of life-threatening organ damage.
But since the federal government cut the program that covered his health care last June, he can no longer get the monthly blood and urine tests and liver ultrasounds he needs to control his condition.
The same cuts meant Daniel Garcia Rodriguez, from Colombia, was nearly denied urgent surgery to repair a retinal detachment. Only the intervention of a charitable Toronto surgeon saved him from going blind.
Hanif Ayubi, from Afghanistan, a Type 1 diabetic, is kept alive on free samples of insulin from a community medical clinic in Ottawa.
Together, the three men are the human face of a federal court case launched Monday against the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. It aims to prove that the changes to the refugee health care program are unconstitutional and illegal under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
The revamped Interim Federal Health Program no longer provides basic health care to rejected refugee claimants who remain in Canada, or to refugee claimants who come from countries designated as “safe.”
The case — brought by the Canadian Doctors for Refugee Care and the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers — could take a year or more to be heard.
Meanwhile, doctors say hundreds of failed asylum seekers and their families — including cancer patients in need of chemotherapy and pregnant women in need of prenatal care — are left without health care if they can’t foot a hefty bill. An exception is made if the person’s particular illness poses a security or safety threat to others.
“This isn’t about getting cavities filled, or glasses, this about prenatal care,” said Audrey Macklin, a University of Toronto professor working with the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers, at a Monday news conference. “This is about children’s lives that are at risk.”
“Many doctors no longer accept insurance from the program; it’s just too complex,” says Dr. Meb Rashid, founder of Canadian Doctors for Refugee Care, noting that people who should still be eligible are being mistakenly denied coverage. “It’s a mess, it’s chaos.”
The cuts are intended to deter bogus refugee claims and prevent the heath care system from being exploited.
“Canadian taxpayers have no obligation to provide gold-plated health insurance to illegal immigrants who have been deemed by our fair and generous legal system not to be refugees,” Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney reiterated in the House of Commons Monday.
The federal government hopes to save $100 million over five years. But Dr. Philip Berger, head of family medicine at St. Michael’s Hospital, says denying rejected refugee claimants heath care could actually end up costing the province heavily.
“If people don’t get care when they need it to prevent an illness, they end up in the emergency room, costing a lot more money,” says Berger, who has been a part of country-wide protests by physicians against the cuts since they were announced.
“It’s deeply disturbing that our government would use health care as a mechanism to discourage refugees from coming to Canada and laying claims.”
Advocates like himself are left with no options but “(court) documents and demonstrations,” he said.
Ontario Health Minister Deb Matthews would not comment on the court case specifically but continues to oppose the heath care cuts.
“We remain committed to protecting the health of those who choose to live in Ontario,” she said in a statement. “Our health care system will not turn away those in need of emergency medical treatment.”
Original Article
Source: thestar.com
Author: Alyshah Hasham
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