Halifax, NS (December 12, 2022) – On International universal health coverage day, there are renewed calls for the Nova Scotia government to grant MSI to Kerian Burnett and all migrant workers in the province.
On December 7, 2022, a new report entitled “Work, Study, Pay Taxes, But Don’t Get Sick: Barriers to Health Care Based on Immigration Status” was released. The report, authored by Emilio Rodriguez with Citizens for Public Justice (CPJ) and Tracy Glynn with the Canadian Health Coalition, recommends that provincial governments provide public health insurance to all migrants, untied to their employer or job status, for the entire duration of their stay in Canada. Kerian was set to speak at the launch event, but was unable to attend because her cancer treatments started that same day.
In April 2022, Kerian came to work on a strawberry farm in Nova Scotia through the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program (SAWP). In September 2022, she was diagnosed with cervical cancer. Her private health insurance, which was tied to her employment, was terminated when her job ended. Without access to MSI, she faces a bill of over $64,000 for the life-saving treatments.
In some provinces, migrant workers have access to public healthcare on arrival. However, in Nova Scotia, migrant workers must have a one-year work permit to be eligible for public healthcare (MSI). This means that SAWP workers are not eligible, because their contracts are only up to 8 months.
“We have not yet achieved universal healthcare coverage in Canada so long as people like Kerian are denied public healthcare coverage based on their immigration status. Healthcare is a human right and everyone should have access,” said Stacey Gomez, who managed No one is illegal – Nova Scotia’s (NOII-NS) Migrant Workers Program.
To date, Health Minister Michelle Thompson has not responded to public calls for Kerian and other migrant workers to be granted MSI, nor NOII-NS’s request for a meeting.
