In this informational YouTube monologue, the speaker addresses American travelers to Nanaimo, British Columbia, explaining that they are not covered by Canada’s universal healthcare because they do not pay Canadian taxes. He outlines typical costs: an emergency‑room visit is roughly CAD 1,000 (≈US $685) and ambulance rides cost about CAD 100–200. He notes that doctors, medications, tests, and other services are billed separately and that Canadian hospitals generally do not direct‑bill U.S. private insurers, so visitors must pay up‑front and seek reimbursement later. The speaker advises checking one’s U.S. health‑insurance policy—original Medicare Parts A/B do not cover care abroad, while Medigap or Medicare Advantage may cover a portion. He recommends obtaining private travel insurance, carrying a credit card with sufficient available credit, and being prepared to pay cash if needed. He mentions that some BC hospitals may work with travel insurers but this is not guaranteed. For reliable health‑service information, he points viewers to the Vancouver Island Health Authority website (islandhealth.ca). The speaker disclaims medical expertise and urges viewers to verify the information themselves.
Chapters
So you are American coming to Nanaimo. What happens if you get hurt here? I got you. First of all, we have hospitals. And also, if you get sick and you get into an ambulance, they're not going to ask you which in-network hospital you want to go to. They're just going to take you to the closest one because that makes sense. Now for the bad news. If you're American, you come up here, you are not covered under Canada's universal healthcare. That's because you don't pay Canadian taxes. So you will have to pay for services. That means a hospital visit or an ER visit runs a little under $1,000. That's about $685 Freedom dollars right now. And that's just for the ER visits, right? So other services— doctors, medications, treatments, tests, all those sorts of things— may and probably will be, in fact, billed separately. Can you get your insurance at home to pay for it? Maybe, but Canadian hospitals will not direct bill your private insurance back home. So you will have to pay for it in Canada with your own money and then submit to your private insurer, your— however it works down there, to get that money back if you can. One very important part: check your American health insurance or your private plans or whatever to make sure that you are covered for international coverage, because sometimes you're not. And my understanding is original Medicare, that's Parts A and B, do not cover outside of the US at all. I learned on the web there's something called Medigap or Medicare Advantage. Apparently that might cover 80%, um, but for sure check that stuff before you leave. Now if you do get private travel insurance, some BC hospitals, not all of them, will try to work with that private insurer to direct bill, but that is not a guarantee, and be prepared to pay in cash up front just in case. And don't worry, if you're critically ill, they will treat you and they'll deal with the paperwork later. So if you're a planner, make sure that you have a credit card with you because all Canadian hospitals will take credit card as a form of payment, and make sure that you've got at least a couple thousand dollars of room left on it, um, not only to spend in our wonderful stores and restaurants but also you know, just in case. Oh, and one last thing is the ambulance service is part of sort of like a different system. So if you use an ambulance, you will receive a different bill for that, but it's usually like $100 or $200 Canadian. I'm not a doctor, I'm not a healthcare professional. I checked this with a nurse friend of ours. I did my best at research, but this is important stuff. Check for yourself. And if you're looking for information on the web, there are certain sites you can trust and certain sites you can't. One really good one is islandhealth.ca. That is our Vancouver Island Health Authority, so islandhealth.ca. But you'll be fine, nothing's gonna happen to you. Come on up.
