When you're outside of Manitoba

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Not all services or facilities outside Manitoba are eligible for payment from Manitoba Health. Please read this section and if you are unsure, contact:

Client Services
Manitoba Health
300 Carlton Street,
Winnipeg MB R3B 3M9
Phone: 786-7101 in Winnipeg or
toll-free (in North America only): 1-800-392-1207
TTY/TDD: call 774-8618 or Manitoba Relay Services toll-free 1-800-855-0511
Toll-free fax: 1-866-608-2983

If you are visiting another province or territory and need insured medical care, show your Manitoba health card. If the required service is covered in Manitoba, the doctor may bill Manitoba Health directly.

If the doctor bills you instead, pay the bill and get an itemized receipt. You can submit this receipt to the Insured Benefits Branch for review and consideration of full or partial reimbursement.

If you are visiting another country, you may be responsible for paying the costs of emergency medical care. We highly recommend that you buy travel health insurance from an insurance company before you leave.

Send your original receipts for any medical care you paid for outside the country to Manitoba Health Insured Benefits Branch (same address as above) within six months of the date you received care. If your claim is approved, you will be reimbursed.

When Manitobans are temporarily away from Canada for reasons such as travelling, working or attending university, Manitoba Health covers emergency medical care at the same rates that are paid in Manitoba:

• Doctor’s bills – covered at the same rates paid to Manitoba doctors
• Hospital bills – if you are admitted to hospital because of an emergency situation, Manitoba will pay between $280 and $570 Canadian a day, depending on the size of the hospital
• Emergency room or outpatient visit – covered up to $100 Canadian a visit

Nurse practitioner or physician assistant bills are not covered by insured benefits if you are outside Manitoba.

The costs in other countries, particularly the U.S., can be significantly higher than what Manitoba Health pays. You pay the difference. If you’re planning to go out of the country, consider getting extra private health insurance. The cost of returning home to Canada after receiving emergency medical care is not covered.

If you are moving away from Manitoba permanently, you must apply for an out-of-province certificate through Manitoba Health. This covers your eligible health costs for the month in which you move to a new location in Canada, plus two additional months. Contact the health insurance plan in your new location as soon as you arrive, so your coverage is not interrupted.

If you take an extended vacation, but are still a permanent resident of Manitoba, you may continue your coverage even though your vacation is longer than three months. You must be in Manitoba for at least 183 days (six months) of the year – those days don’t have to be in a row. Before you leave, send Manitoba Health Client Services a letter providing:

• your full name
• your permanent address
• the date you will leave
• the date you intend to return
• your six-digit Manitoba Health number
• your out-of-province address
• the names of any family members who are going with you

You then receive a special certificate entitling you to benefits under Manitoba Health.

If you are leaving the province to attend school full time, but are still a permanent resident of Manitoba, you must send the same letter you would send for an extended vacation. You must include a letter from the school that you are attending, confirming your status as a full-time student and the length of your studies.

You must reapply for coverage and provide enrolment confirmation each year you attend school outside the province.

If you are leaving the province for a temporary job, missionary work or a sabbatical and returning to Manitoba, you must send Manitoba Health Client Services a copy of your work contract, indicating the length of your job term.

If you intend to return to the province, Manitoba Health may extend your coverage for up to 24 months.