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B.C. medical services agency takes Telus Health to court, alleges two-tier medical service

“Access to necessary medical care should be based on need and not an individual’s ability to pay.” — Health Minister Adrian Dix

B.C.’s Medical Services Commission is taking Telus Health to court over its subscription-based health service, alleging it amounts to illegal extra-billing.

The commission applied Thursday for an injunction against Telus Health’s LifePlus program in B.C. Supreme Court, arguing the private, fee-based model which charges patients thousands of year contravenes the Medicare Protection Act, according to Health Minister Adrian Dix.

Complaints about Telus’s LifePlus Program and other private fee-based services pushed Dix in February to ask the commission — governed by a body that includes doctors, and government and public representatives — to review the practices to ensure they are not breaking B.C. law by allowing patients who pay a fee to jump the queue.

“The commission has investigated and determined that Telus Health is charging for or in relation to MSP covered medical services such that a reasonable person would consider that the purchase of Telus Health’s services would result in preferential treatment or priority access to those services,” according to the petition to the court.

The court petition includes an affidavit from a private investigator hired by the commission who said after contacting Telus Health several times about seeing a family physician, he was given five options for enrolment, four of which cost money. The final option was the company’s virtual pharmacy which is free.

The petition quoted sections of Telus Health’s website about the LifePlus program which read: “LifePlus includes 24/7 physician coverage” and “Your Telus Health Care Centres team can assist you when there is an urgent need for expedited medical care.”

The petition said the wording of these statements changed after the commission initiated its review. That review was completed in the fall but it was not made public.

“It is very important to uphold the Medicare Protection Act, which is in place to preserve our publicly managed and fiscally sustainable health-care system for British Columbia,” Dix told reporters on Thursday. “Access to necessary medical care should be based on need and not an individual’s ability to pay.”

The act prohibits charging people for access to services covered by the Medical Services Plan.

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