Interim Federal Health Program: Get health products and services

What to do with your eligibility document

Sign your IFHP document as soon as you get it. Don’t lend or give it to anyone. You don’t need to sign the Acknowledgement of Claim.

You must show your IFHP eligibility document to your health care provider each time you need a service or product so they can confirm your coverage.

Your coverage can be cancelled without notice if your immigration status changes and you stop being eligible for the IFHP. This is why health-care providers must confirm that you’re eligible for coverage before providing a product or service.

Lost or stolen document

If your document is lost, stolen, or destroyed you can apply to request confirmation of coverage. Once the application is processed, a new Interim Federal Health Certificate will be sent to you.

How to get treatment

Follow these steps

1. Find a health-care provider registered with the IFHP claims administrator, Medavie Blue Cross.
   • The IFHP claims administrator is the company that administers IFHP claims for health-care professionals, pharmacies and hospitals.
2. Show your IFHP eligibility document to your health-care provider before you seek treatment.
3. After you receive treatment, your health-care provider may ask you to sign a form as proof that you received the health service or product.

Letter to confirm that you received health services or products

You may receive a letter from Medavie Blue Cross asking you to confirm if you received health services or products on a given date.

You are asked to

• Respond to the question
• Sign the letter
• Return it to Medavie Blue Cross.

This isn’t a bill. This will help to prevent fraud. Signing this letter won’t have an effect on your eligibility for IFHP coverage or on your immigration status.

Know your coverage

IFHP doesn’t cover all health-care services or products. Know what health care products and services are included in your IFHP coverage before you request them. If you need a health-care service or product that isn’t covered, you will have to pay for it.

If you have private or public health insurance from another source

• IFHP won’t pay for any service or product for which you may claim under that plan, regardless of the amount that will be paid by your plan for that service or product.
• IFHP will pay for any products or services for which you can’t make a claim under your private insurance plan and for which you are covered under the IFHP.

Coverage under a provincial or territorial health insurance plan

Unless you’re a resettled refugee, you’ll stop being eligible for all benefits through IFHP when you become eligible for coverage under provincial or territorial health insurance.

IFHP does not

• cover any health-care service or product that you can claim (in whole or in part) under a public or private health insurance plan
• coordinate benefits with other insurance plans, or process co-payments

If you’re a resettled refugee

If you’re covered by provincial or territorial health insurance, you won’t be eligible for basic benefits through IFHP.

You’ll still be covered for supplemental benefits until either

• your private sponsorship period ends
• you stop receiving income support through the Resettlement Assistance Program (or its Quebec equivalent).

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