Sask. to provide financial support to families with children travelling out of province for care
Sask. families who are required to travel outside of the province to access medical care for their children will receive financial support.
Health Minister Everett Hindley elaborated on the policy change while speaking with reporters on Wednesday.
“As a result of the meetings that we've had with families in consultation with health care providers, including the head of pediatrics here in Saskatchewan, we will be providing financial assistance for families that need to be referred out of province,” he said.
The financial supports will include up to $2,000 for families with children aged 16 and younger seeking out of province pediatric care.
“We're still working on the criteria itself and working closely with the health care teams,” he continued. “This is the first time that we've done this.”
The reimbursement will include expenses related to transportation and accommodations and will go into effect retroactive to April 1, 2024.
Hindley said that children will need a referral from a specialist and the treatment cannot be offered in Saskatchewan in order for families to be eligible for the supports.
The announcement comes after a long list of families have visited the legislature in the past several months – most notably to highlight the lack of pediatric gastroenterologists in Saskatchewan.
The Weber family was one such case.
The family highlighted the financial hardships they’ve endured while travelling to Toronto so that 16-year-old Zach Engen could receive treatment for his eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE).
“This is one of the toughest years of our lives,” Zach’s mother, Alyssa Weber told reporters while visiting the legislature last month.
“We need help. We're trying to do it financially by ourselves, but we can't anymore.”
Hindley said the supports will help families deal with the pressures of seeking out of province care – while the government continues to fill vacancies at centres such as the Jim Pattison’s Children’s Hospital in Saskatoon.
“We're going to work very hard to make sure that that is fully staffed and we can provide as many services as we can close to home for kids in Saskatchewan,” he added. “Recognizing of course that there are some very highly complicated and complex procedures that won't be provided here.”
Pediatric referrals now join breast cancer testing as the two instances where the government will cover out of province travel expenses. It’s an acknowledgment that a shortage of specialists is creating a financial burden for some Saskatchewan residents.
- With files from Wayne Mantyka
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Serial sexual offender linked to unsolved 1970s homicides of four Calgary girls, women
An investigation into unsolved historical homicides from the 1970s has linked the deaths of two girls and two young women in and around Calgary to a now-deceased serial offender.
Woman with liver failure rejected for a transplant after medical review highlights alcohol use
For nearly three months, Amanda Huska has been in an Ontario hospital, part of it on life support, because of severe liver failure. Her history of alcohol use is getting in the way of her only potential treatment: a liver transplant.
Video appears to show Sean 'Diddy' Combs beating singer Cassie in hotel hallway in 2016
Security video aired by CNN appears to show Sean 'Diddy' Combs physically assaulting singer Cassie in a Los Angeles hotel hallway in 2016.
Scottie Scheffler isn't the first pro golfer to be arrested during a tournament
Scottie Scheffler's arrest hours before his second-round tee time at the PGA Championship in Louisville, Kentucky, will go down as one of the most shocking in professional golf history. It certainly wasn't the first, though.
B.C. man 'attacked suddenly' by adult grizzly near Alberta border: RCMP
A B.C. man is recovering from multiple injuries after he was "attacked suddenly" by an adult grizzly bear near Elkford Thursday afternoon.
Anglers reel in 3.5-metre-long tiger shark off coast of Florida: 'She found my bait'
A group of fishers said it took roughly 20 minutes to reel in this 3.5-metre-long tiger shark off the coast of Florida.
Australia's richest woman seeks removal of her portrait from exhibition
Art is subjective. And while many artists long to share their work with the world, there's no guarantee that the audience will understand it, or even like it.
Canadian convicted of attacking Nancy Pelosi's husband with a hammer sentenced to 30 years
The man convicted of attempting to kidnap then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and attacking her husband with a hammer was sentenced Friday to 30 years in prison.
NEW What a wildfire survivor says she regrets not grabbing before leaving home
Carol Christian had 15 minutes to evacuate her home during the Fort McMurray wildfires in 2016. She ended up losing the house and everything inside. Now, she wants to share the lessons she learned.