Health Insurance

Manitoba Health Insurance is available free to students and their family members if they have a study permit valid for more than six months from the date that Manitoba Health Insurance is applied for. Application for Manitoba Health can be made at the Manitoba Health offices at 300 Carlton St., Winnipeg where a MBHealth card will be issued while you wait. Application can also be made in St. Pierre-Jolys at the Bilingual Service Centre 427 Sabourin Street. Coverage will start on the same date as the “date of issue” shown on the student’s study permit. Students may be billed for health services provided before receipt of the health card, however, Manitoba Health will reimburse the costs.

International students not qualifying for Manitoba Health (i.e. those without a study permit) will be enrolled with a student health insurance called StudentGuard Standard. This student health insurance provides benefits resembling Manitoba Health (up to a limit of $2,000,000) as well as providing additional coverages for situations particular to international students (see Benefits section below).

International students who qualify and are registered with Manitoba Health are required to enroll with StudentGuard Plus, which provides the same additional coverages as mentioned in the Benefits section below onto their MBHealth. It is mandatory for all international students coming to Providence to purchase one of these two StudentGuard health plans, regardless if they already have personal travel health insurance. The StudentGuard Standard plan is also available as optional health coverage for spouses and children of international students. The StudentGuard Plus plan is only available to registered students of Providence.

Enrollment and Costs

All new international students with study permits will be enrolled with MBHealth upon their arrival. There is no fee levied to students for MBHealth. These same students will then be enrolled in the mandatory StudentGuard Plus plan as described above at a rate (2012-13) of $25 per month. Students without study permits will be enrolled in the mandatory StudentGuard Standard plan upon their arrival at Providence. Fees for this plan (2012-13) will be $1.45 per day or approximately $174.00 for one semester (September 1 to December 31 or January 1 to April 30). Students planning to stay in Canada and register for the subsequent fall semester can continue their coverage over the summer holidays. Married students coming to Providence with family members may optionally purchase StudentGuard Standard for their spouse and children at a rate (2012-13) of $1.45 per individual.

Students must complete the StudentGuard application form (available from the International Student Services Coordinator) for either the StudentGuard Standard or the StudentGuard Plus plan and decide for how long coverage is required.

Benefits

StudentGuard Standard includes the same coverage as with Manitoba Health up to a limit of $2,000,000. In addition extra coverages are included to reflect the needs of the international student such as: eye examinations, ambulance costs, paramedical services (chiropractor, massage therapist), prescription medications, dental work (accidental injuries only), out of Canada coverage, family transportation to Canada in cases of medical emergencies, and repatriation to home country in case of a sickness or death. The StudentGuard Plus program covers only those health services not already covered by Manitoba Health and is limited to the additional coverages listed above.