Canadian Supplemental Health Plan

I received the following from an NRPC representative today. It will be of interest to Canadian retirees or people planning to move back to Canada.

The NRPC has been able to negotiate a favourable supplemental health insurance plan for former employees of Nortel who are living in Canada. I pass this information on because there may be former employees living in other countries who are worried about what to do when they lose their retiree medical benefits in their country of residence. The plan requires that you be a Canadian resident and provides medical insurance that supplements the provincial insurance plans. Some people might consider re-patriation as a reasonable method of getting ongoing medical insurance.

We have been advised that this plan is available to all former employees of Nortel Canada if they reside in Canada. However, if you consider moving back to Canada, please confirm with Manulife that they will honour this plan in advance including not requiring evidence of insurability.

The note below refers strictly to medical insurance in Canada and has nothing to do with any retiree medical insurance that you might be receiving in the USA or other country. Although the existing retiree medical benefits for former employees in Canada will end on December 31, 2010, at this point I have no further information on when similar benefits may cease in other countries.