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New Brunswick

Provincial disease groups

It is usually possible to get a great deal of assistance and guidance by contacting the not-for-profit organization associated with your condition. Here is a list of the major groups in New Brunswick.

• Canadian Cancer Society
• Canadian Diabetes Association
• Asthma Society of Canada
• Heart and Stroke Foundation
• Easter Seals New Brunswick
• Canadian Mental Health Association

HEALTH SERVICES

Medicare

New Brunswick Medicare insures New Brunswick residents for medically necessary services from doctors and hospitals. There are no fees and no deductibles. Anyone having a permanent residence in New Brunswick is eligible for coverage. Dependants should register for their own Medicare card when they turn 19.

To register for Medicare, print this form (requires Adobe Reader) and send it by mail or in person to your local Service New Brunswick office.

New Brunswick doctors may choose to bill you directly instead of seeking reimbursement from Medicare for their services. They may even bill more than the insured Medicare rates, provided they receive your signed consent before providing the service. You can be reimbursed by Medicare if your doctor is only charging the insured rate. However if you consent to be charged more for the service, you cannot recover any of the cost of that service from Medicare.

The following services are not covered by New Brunswick Medicare:

• abortion (unless the abortion is performed by a specialist in the field of obstetrics and gynecology in an approved hospital facility and two physicians certify in writing that the abortion is medically required)
• acupuncture
• advice or prescription renewal by telephone
• ambulance services, as well as transportation costs to and from your place of residence to obtain medical or hospital services
• anesthesia for dental work
• artificial insemination
• blood taken in a doctor’s office
• breast enlargement for cosmetic purposes
• circumcision of newborns
• annual check-ups
• dental services provided by a physician
• dentures
• drugs and medicines
• elective plastic surgery or other services for cosmetic purposes
• examinations, immunizations, diagnostic or other services at the request of any third party for the purposes of employment, travel, emigration or insurance
• eye-glasses, frames or contact lenses, as well as refractions for prescription eye-glasses
• gastric stapling or gastric bypass (stomach stapling)
• hospital visits solely for the administration of drugs, vaccines, serums or biological products
• hypnosis
• immunizations which are available through Public Health clinics
• medical materials
• medications for the patient to take home from the hospital
• otoplasty (correction of prominent ears) for those over 18 years of age
• prosthetic devices or appliances, artificial limbs and such returnable items as walkers, special crutches and braces
• removal of minor skin lesions such as warts – except when cancer is suspected
• reversal of tubal ligation and vasectomy
• services covered by other public health insurers
• services generally accepted within New Brunswick as experimental or that are provided as applied research
• services provided by allied health professionals outside of a hospital where you are an inpatient
• subsequent injections for impotence following initial injection
• surgical supplies
• semi-private or private rooms

Source: New Brunswick Department of Health

Coverage may vary for specific situations. Contact Medicare if you have questions about your coverage.

New Brunswick Medicare
Department of Health
P. O. Box 5100
Fredericton, N.B.
E3B 5G8

Phone: (506) 684-7901
Toll-free within North America: 1-888-762-8600
E-mail: medicare@gnb.ca

Prescription Drug Program

Drugs administered to hospital inpatients are covered by Medicare. Certain residents of New Brunswick who are eligible for coverage under Medicare may also have their prescription drug costs partially or fully covered under one of several drug plans administered by the New Brunswick Prescription Drug Program.

Name of plan	Group covered	Co-payment per prescription/annual cost ceiling*
A	Low-income seniors	$9.05/$250 per person
B	Individuals with cystic fibrosis, juvenile or infant sclerosis of the pancreas who lack other coverage	The lower of 20% or $20/$500 plus a $50 registration fee per family
E	Individuals who reside in a licenced adult residential facility	$4/$250 per person
F	Individuals receiving social assistance who have received a health card from the Department of Family and Community Services	$4 (adults) $2 (children)/$250 per family
G	Children in the care of Family and Community Services and children with special needs	No co-payments
H	Individuals diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis and who have a prescription written by a neurologist for the drugs Avonex, Rebif, Betaseron or Copaxone	Co-payments determined in application process/no ceiling plus $50 annual registration fee per person
R	Individuals who have received an organ or bone marrow transplant and who lack other coverage	The lower of 20% or $20/$500 per family plus $50 annual registration fee
T	Individuals under the age of 18 diagnosed with growth hormone deficiency or hypopituitarism and who lack other coverage	The lower of 20% or $20/$500 per family plus $50 annual registration fee
U	Individuals with HIV/AIDS who do not have other coverage	The lower of 20% or $20/$500 per family plus $50 annual registration fee
V	Individuals who reside in a nursing home	No co-payments

*Once a family or individual has reached its cost ceiling, the Prescription Drug Program covers 100% of prescription drug costs for the remainder of the year.

Only drugs appearing in the New Brunswick Prescription Drug Formulary will be covered. If you need a drug that is not on the Formulary, contact the Special Authorization Unit of the New Brunswick Prescription Drug Program to apply for special coverage.

To register for the Prescription Drug Program, contact the Administration Office.

Prescription Drug Program Administration Office
Location:
644 Main Street
Moncton, NB
E1C 8L3

Mailing address:
P.O. Box 690
Moncton, NB
E1C 8M7

Phone: (506) 867-4515
Toll-free: 1-800-332-3692 (New Brunswick only)
E-mail: info@nbpdp-pmonb.ca

Medicare coverage outside New Brunswick

If you see a doctor or get hospital services elsewhere in Canada, you can usually just show your New Brunswick Medicare card and be covered. However, some services are not part of the agreements between New Brunswick and other provinces and some hospitals will bill directly for some insured services. You can apply to Medicare for reimbursement when you return to New Brunswick, but coverage is not guaranteed.

There is no interprovincial agreement with Quebec. Doctors and hospitals there may bill you directly or bill Medicare. You can apply to be reimbursed if you get billed, but Medicare may not always cover the entire bill.

It is still advisable to take out travel insurance even if you are staying in Canada. While most emergency services are covered by the interprovincial agreements, other expenses are not, such as transportation home and private room upgrades.

To claim out-of-province expenses, fill out this form (requires Adobe Reader) and drop it off or mail it to a Service New Brunswick location with original, itemized receipts. You have one year from the time you received the service to make a claim.

Medicare coverage outside Canada

Medicare will cover emergency doctor and hospital services outside Canada, but only up to the amount that would be paid for those services in New Brunswick. In most cases, this amount is far less than the actual bill. New Brunswick Medicare strongly advises that New Brunswickers buy private travel insurance before leaving the country.

Medicare will only cover non-emergency services outside Canada if your doctor receives prior approval for the out-of-country referral and the service is not offered anywhere in Canada.

To claim out-of-country expenses, fill out this form (requires Adobe Reader) and drop it off or mail it to a Service New Brunswick location with original, itemized receipts. You have one year from the time you received the service to make a claim.

Allied health professionals

Services provided by physiotherapists, chiropractors and other allied health professionals are not covered by Medicare unless they are provided in a hospital. Many private insurance and employee plans do cover these services.

Locate a...

• audiologist
• chiropractor
• dentist
• dietitian
• massage therapist
• occupational therapist
• optician
• optometrist
• physiotherapist
• podiatrist
• psychologist

Cancer care

Community cancer care is provided in New Brunswick through clinics run by the Regional Health Authorities (RHA A and RHA B) and by the Canadian Cancer Society. Specialized cancer care including surgery is centralized at the Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre in Halifax.

Cancer drugs that are given in hospitals or cancer clinics are covered by Medicare, but there is no other government assistance with the high cost of drugs for cancer outpatients. Private insurance or employee programs may cover these costs.

Flu shot

See our Flu Vaccination Guide for information about seasonal flu vaccine availability by province or territory.

Mental health care

New Brunswick delivers mental health care through 13 community mental health centres that are operated directly by the Department of Health, and contracts the Regional Health Authorities to provide eight in-hospital psychiatric units, one child and youth psychiatric unit and two residential institutions: the Restigouche Hospital Centre in Campbellton and Centracare in Saint John. Contact mental health services in your area.

The Department of Health’s Mental Health Services page has many links to community mental health centres, suicide prevention, elder and youth programs and other online mental health resources.

Palliative care

You can receive palliative care in your home through your Regional Health Authority (RHA A or RHA B), with a doctor’s referral and a needs assessment by a caseworker. In-home palliative care is funded in New Brunswick by the New Brunswick Extra Mural Program, which provides all drugs, staff and equipment through the RHA.

The Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association provides an online directory of palliative care hospices in New Brunswick. You may receive care in a hospice if that is your preference, or if your situation is not suited for home care delivery.

Wait times

New Brunswick surgical wait times are reported on the New Brunswick Surgical Care Network website. The times refer to the time between the last major consult with the surgeon to the surgery and are expressed as a percentage of procedures that fall into various time ranges.

See the article on wait times on this website for helpful advice and information on how to receive faster service for surgical procedures, certain diagnostic tests (such as an MRI) and appointments with a specialist doctor.

Workplace injuries

If you are injured on the job in New Brunswick, you may be eligible for compensation through WorksafeNB. In order to claim compensation you must report your injury to your employer immediately, ask your doctor to forward the medical records from your injury to the Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation Commission (WHSCC), and fill out and submit this form (requires Adobe Reader) as soon as possible.

Saint John – Head Office
1 Portland Street
PO Box 160
Saint John NB
E2L 3X9

Phone: (506) 632-2200
Toll-free: 1-800-222-9775

Compensation for a workplace injury may include replacement of lost wages, long term disability benefits, permanent impairment awards, coverage of health and transportation costs and more. If you are receiving WHSCC benefits, make sure you keep all your health appointments and follow doctor’s orders to the letter.

Telephone support

You can call Tele-Care at 8-1-1 24 hours a day, seven days a week and speak to a registered nurse. The nurse will listen to your symptoms or health concerns and give you advice on what to do next.

DISABILITY SUPPORT

Assistive devices

You can always get the Department of Social Development to help with the cost of assistive devices if you can show that you need the device and are unable to afford it. You may also be able to obtain free or subsidized devices if you are a member of one of these groups:

• people receiving Social Assistance
• children with special needs in low-income families
• children in residential or foster care
• adults in residential care subsidized by Social Development (formerly FCS)
• people who need employment support

Consult this page for information regarding rehabilitation equipment. The Red Cross Health Equipment Loan Program can supply a wide variety of devices based on need.

Employment support for people with disabilities

If you have a disability and need special training or equipment in order to work, Training and Support Services (TESS) can help, based on your needs as assessed by a caseworker. TESS is delivered through your Regional Health Authority (RHA A or RHA B).

Financial support for people with disabilities

The terms and conditions for Social Assistance support for people with disabilities is described in the Social Assistance policy manual. In general, you become eligible for social assistance benefits if you are blind, deaf or otherwise disabled (as certified by the Medical Advisory Board) and your household income and assets are below certain levels. You may be required to seek employment, depending on your level of disability.

Department of Social Development
Sartain MacDonald Building
P. O. Box 6000
Fredericton, NB
E3B 5H1

Phone: (506) 453-2001
Fax: (506) 453-2164

Home care and assisted living

New Brunswickers can receive care in their homes from their Regional Health Authority based on an assessment from a caseworker. Services include:

• rehabilitation following surgery or debilitating injury
• oxygen therapy
• personal assistance with tasks such as bathing and grooming
• light housework
• assistance with medication or other treatments

Fees for this service are based on your income level.

Find out more about the Extra-Mural Program.

Long term residential care for seniors and adults who are unable to receive care in their homes is delivered through the Regional Health Authorities and funded by Family and Community Services. To find out more about the long term care options in your area, go to your Regional Health Authority (RHA A or RHA B).

Respite services

In-home respite for caregivers of disabled adults is offered through the Extra-Mural Program at your Regional Health Authority. Respite is offered on a 24 hour basis over a specified short term.

Families of children with special needs can access relief care and other services through the Community Based Services for Children with Special Needs program of the Department of Family and Community Services.

Department of Social Development
Sartain MacDonald Building
P. O. Box 6000
Fredericton, NB
E3B 5H1

Phone: (506) 453-2001
Fax: (506) 453-2164

LAWS AND REGULATIONS

Medical records

Under the federal Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), doctors and hospitals in New Brunswick must keep complete and accurate records in your medical file and allow you to see those records in a timely manner. They can charge for copies, but only a reasonable fee. If you find information in those records that is incorrect, you may correct it or add a note outlining your objection.

PIPEDA

Power of Attorney and other legal relationships

Please note: The information provided here is provided for information purposes only and should not be considered legal advice.

In New Brunswick, you may give Power of Attorney over your financial affairs and personal affairs to one person, or you may choose two different people to exercise the two separate kinds of Power. As in other jurisdictions, regular Power of Attorney is only valid in the event that you are capable of making decisions. In order for the Power of Attorney agreement to continue once you’ve become incapacitated, you must see a lawyer to make an Enduring Power of Attorney agreement. Or you can make a Springing Power of Attorney agreement that only comes into effect once you are incapacitated. When you die, all Power of Attorney agreements end and the Executor of your will takes over financial management of your estate.

New Brunswick Power of Attorney information.

Office of the Public Trustee of New Brunswick
P. O. Box 400
Fredericton, NB
E3B 4Z9

Phone: (506) 444-3688 (General Information)
Toll-free: 1-888-336-8383
Fax: (506) 444-3500

Regulatory and administrative bodies

New Brunswick Medicare is the public health insurer in New Brunswick, under the auspices of the Department of Health.

Community health care is delivered in New Brunswick by the Regional Health Authorities (RHA A and RHA B).

Doctors are licenced and regulated by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of New Brunswick. Nurses are regulated by the Nurses Association of New Brunswick.