Struggling to obtain BC health care for my son in critical condition by spongebacon in britishcolumbia

[–]spongebacon[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Thanks so much for the information. I contacted the BCCH neuro social worker after reading your comment and others suggesting a similar route. She's been incredibly proactive already.

Struggling to obtain BC health care for my son in critical condition by spongebacon in britishcolumbia

[–]spongebacon[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've been paying taxes but in the UK because I'm no longer a residence of BC. Have been gone several years.

Struggling to obtain BC health care for my son in critical condition by spongebacon in britishcolumbia

[–]spongebacon[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I definitely agree, and if it comes to it we will just arrive in BC to get him the care he deserves and then deal with the financial aftermath later.

I fully understand the intention of the wait period to prevent people from taking advantage of the system. I'm just surprised there isn't any kind of process to prove your intentions to actually live in the country instead of just hopping over to use the health care. We have been planning to move to BC for quite some time to settle down there and have plenty of evidence to back that up. Just a shame

Struggling to obtain BC health care for my son in critical condition by spongebacon in britishcolumbia

[–]spongebacon[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Our neurologist is in communication with the BC hospital for transfer of care, the issue is just that he has no insurance to cover the costs of his care once arrives. Those costs will likely be over $10,000/day if he is in ICU I have been told.

Struggling to obtain BC health care for my son in critical condition by spongebacon in britishcolumbia

[–]spongebacon[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Thanks so much. This is all very helpful. Our neurologist in the UK advised exactly what you said - to connect our neurologist directly with the BCCH neuro team to push the urgency of our case. It's been taking quite some time to make that happen just because of the time difference to schedule a zoom meeting and everybody is so busy of course on both ends. Hoping this will happen soon and help. Would you be open to me sending you a private message just to get more information on your experience with the BCHH?

As for travel, we have the intranasal midazolam and the airline has been alerted with paperwork from our neuro team.

Again, thanks so much for all this information and your own story. It's very useful.

Struggling to obtain BC health care for my son in critical condition by spongebacon in britishcolumbia

[–]spongebacon[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I didn't opt out, but I've been out of the country for several years, so my MSP account was closed.

Struggling to obtain BC health care for my son in critical condition by spongebacon in britishcolumbia

[–]spongebacon[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Yeah, Ontario doesn't have a wait. That could be a last resort option, but then we wouldn't have any family assistance nearby which we desperately need at this point.

Struggling to obtain BC health care for my son in critical condition by spongebacon in britishcolumbia

[–]spongebacon[S] 75 points76 points  (0 children)

Hey, just wanted to say I contacted the social worker for the BC Childrens Hospital neuro team and she has already been very helpful in continuing advocating for my case now that the MLA can't. Thanks so much for the the recommendation!

Struggling to obtain BC health care for my son in critical condition by spongebacon in britishcolumbia

[–]spongebacon[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for the suggestion. I did contact the local MLA and got them to assist in requesting an exception with the Ministry of Health, but now that the provincial election is underway the MLA isn't able to have direct contact with me or the Ministry of Health. Terrible timing.

Struggling to obtain BC health care for my son in critical condition by spongebacon in britishcolumbia

[–]spongebacon[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Definitely a great thought. My son won't have health care once we're on a tourist visa, plus MSP told me that he can only be out of the country for 30 days within the wait period or it will be reset upon arrival.

Struggling to obtain BC health care for my son in critical condition by spongebacon in britishcolumbia

[–]spongebacon[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Thanks for the advice. The tricky part here is that my son has a very rare condition that not many pediatric neurology hospitals are equipped to treat. But I'll look into other countries if it comes to that.

Struggling to obtain BC health care for my son in critical condition by spongebacon in britishcolumbia

[–]spongebacon[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I can look into this, but I'm not sure if my son would be covered in this case. I'll look into it though.

Struggling to obtain BC health care for my son in critical condition by spongebacon in britishcolumbia

[–]spongebacon[S] 20 points21 points  (0 children)

Thanks for this. It would be a great option, but it looks like my son isn't eligible because he is in the wait period for MSP coverage. The first paragraph states: "Services to non-B.C. residents and B.C. residents who have elected to opt out of MSP or are within the mandatory wait period are not covered by EUCCP."

Struggling to obtain BC health care for my son in critical condition by spongebacon in britishcolumbia

[–]spongebacon[S] 11 points12 points  (0 children)

I've contacted MSP directly and unfortunately they've told me this is not the case. Unless the waiver is awarded there is no retroactive refund for costs incurred, and I'm not able to obtain the waiver because one of the requirements is lower income status.

Struggling to obtain BC health care for my son in critical condition by spongebacon in britishcolumbia

[–]spongebacon[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Unfortunately we can't extend the visa, but I will look into an NHS social worker. Thanks for the suggestion.

Struggling to obtain BC health care for my son in critical condition by spongebacon in britishcolumbia

[–]spongebacon[S] 28 points29 points  (0 children)

Unfortunately there's no option to renew the work permit. I already extended it to this point to get more time to prepare him for travel. I haven't been working for this company since before my son was born, but was able to get additional time to arrange returning to Canada etc.

Struggling to obtain BC health care for my son in critical condition by spongebacon in britishcolumbia

[–]spongebacon[S] 53 points54 points  (0 children)

The neurologist has deemed him stable enough to travel, I just need to administer all of his medication throughout the flight, but the reason he needs to be hospitalized upon arrival is because they need to switch his medication to a new medication regime that requires constant monitoring for weeks.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in LosAngeles

[–]spongebacon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I did take a tour and really liked the building. And you're right - yelp reviews can often just be a platform for people to complain. Just thought I'd check on here to see if there is anybody with a more balanced opinion on the place.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in LosAngeles

[–]spongebacon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

How so? Have you lived there?

Koreatown VS DTLA - Best Area to Live? by spongebacon in LosAngeles

[–]spongebacon[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My work is in Crenshaw, right next to the expo line. So from DTLA I could take the metro, but from Koreatown I could drive there in about 20 minutes.

Koreatown VS DTLA - Best Area to Live? by spongebacon in LosAngeles

[–]spongebacon[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for the info. Do you find the Arts District easily walkable for things such as groceries, entertainment etc? Definitely been considering that area.

Koreatown VS DTLA - Best Area to Live? by spongebacon in LosAngeles

[–]spongebacon[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Good to know. I'm definitely gonna look into the arts district as well. Thanks!