Newsletter: September 2003

September is always a busy month. It's when we get back into our routines. We go back to work/school; our kids go back to school; our guests quit coming and going; we begin the seemingly endless driving duties that come with parenthood; we re-start our various 'committee' meetings; the gardening chores, house and car maintenance must be undertaken for the coming winter...the list, as always, goes on and on.

In all this busy-ness, remember to take care of yourselves. Make the time to see to your own 'preventive maintenance'. Have your teeth cleaned; get back to your healthy eating styles; get back into your fitness routine; see your chiropractor; plan on at least 15 minutes of silence every day just for you. Regroup. Recharge. Realign. Reconnect. You'll love yourselves for it.

OFFICE NEWS

GET ON THE BALL AND PREVENT LOW BACK PAIN!

Join Dr. Larry Smith and Doug Pickard (Personal Trainer from the Fitness Connection) for a highly informative and entertaining presentation on how to develop our core stabilizing muscles using the fitness ball.

These core stabilizing muscles must be recruited with specific exercises to properly support our low-backs.

The fitball exercises are a fun and highly effective method to develop and utilize these very important muscles, and are recommended for people of all ages and fitness levels.

Please wear gym clothes.

This seminar will take place on Tuesday, September 16th at 7:00 p.m. in the Seminar Room of the Parksville PharmaSave (at Pioneer Plaza next to our office). It is free of charge PLUS PharmaSave will be offering a 20% discount on their fitballs to all seminar participants.

Please call our office (248-6333) or the PharmaSave (951-0227) for details and to register. See you there.

FIBROMYALGIA

Dr. Larry sees a number of patients who suffer from this somewhat mis-understood condition. As there seems to be a lack of literature available on fibromyalgia, Dr. Larry has undertaken further research on this topic lately. Rather than devoting an entire newsletter to this subject, he thought it might be more appropriate to make the information he recently gathered available through our website. So if you, or someone you know, might find this information helpful, please check our website for this very thorough article on "Fibromyalgia - Evidence-Based Nutrition and Lifestyle Management". We will also have copies available at the office. There is also a fairly newly organized Fibromyalgia Support Group here in Oceanside. If you are interested, please contact Rita at 954-3975. Their next meeting is this Thursday, September 4th in the evening. They have also asked Dr. Larry to speak to their group in December. Watch this newsletter for more details.

The Medical Plan's "Premium Assistance Program"

I have decided to publish a bit of information that I have been repeating over and over to our patients. This comes under the category of "ways-to-reduce-the-amount-of-money-that-the-government-takes - (but-they-don't-work-overmuch-letting-us-know-about-it").

Many of you may be aware of the Medical Services Plan of B.C.'s (also known as MSP-BC; also know as B.C. Med) "Premium Assistance Program". In fact, a number of our patients have been enrolled in this program for many years. What most of us are NOT aware of is that many, many more of us qualify without knowing we do. The 'powers-that-be' do seem quite good at keeping us all confused! A recent example is the medical plan's Fair PharmaCare Financial Assistance Program. Boy! Wasn't that a easy, hassle-free, do-it-ourselves adventure? Only problem is -- very few people seem to know what it was all about! It applies ONLY to prescription medication costs. When I have informed patients that they might possibly be entitled to Premium Assistance through MSP, many people have told me that they thought that was what they had applied for in the last few months, you know, the PharmaCare thing! These are two different things.

Here is how Premium Assistance works: The Medical Services Plan of B.C. (MSP) has a sliding scale for qualifying for this benefit. It is true that it is BASED on your family's NET INCOME as reported on your previous year's taxes -- If that amount is under $24,000, you qualify for a discount on the premiums that you pay monthly for your health insurance. HOWEVER....

That is where most of the information stops. Not only does the government NOT make a point of advertising the full information, but most people whose income is over that amount, simply figure they don't qualify. Here's what is NOT widely known: The form that you have to complete (and for once it's a really simple form!) to apply for Premium Assistance, starts with your Net Income; then it asks for your spouse's Net Income; then you add the two together. The next section allows for some deductions from that amount. If you have a spouse, you can deduct $3,000 from your Net Income; if you are over 65, you can deduct another $3,000 from it; if your spouse is over 65, you can deduct another $3,000 from it. The end result is what MSP calls your "Adjusted Net Income".

The form also allows for a younger family to deduct $3,000 for each child. So, you see, even if your household Net Income was $32,900, with the deductions for a couple both 65 years of age or better, you would still qualify for the first level of assistance -- which is 20%. For a couple with two children the same applies. That means instead of paying $96 a month for your MSP (for a couple), you would pay $76.80. For a family of four (based on the same $31,900 income) it would mean with a $3,000 deduction for your spouse, and $3,000 for each child, your "adjusted net income" would be $16,900. As such, instead of paying $108.00 per month for your family's medical insurance, you would pay $21.60 per month! Do the math! That is $86.40 less each month -- or $1,036.80 per year!

It also means that you are now deemed to be "EXEMPT" as described by MSP and as such, they pay for a COMBINED TOTAL OF 10 visits to chiropractors, massage therapists, naturopaths, podiatrists, physios for each calendar year. In our office that means you pay $5.00 each for those ten chiropractic visits instead of $30.00!

Here is another thing most people are unaware of: If your premiums are paid for through your employer, union or pension plan, you can notify their office and they can set you (and your family) up for the Premium Assistance rate. Of course, that too means that you would then be eligible for the "exempt" status at the chiropractor's (et al) office and would pay the $5.00 per visit (maximum 10) instead of the $30.00. The really good thing about this scenario is that most of us who get our medical coverage through employment, also have additional coverage through an extended health plan. These plans pick up some or all of the cost of chiropractors, etc., so you would get reimbursed by them for these visits.

I've discovered that many of our patients are enrolled in the Premium Assistance Plan and are not even aware of it. Again, MSP just sends you the bill, they don't tell you anything else. So if you don't know that there are different rates for different categories, how would you know you are paying a discounted rate and are therefore "exempt"?

Another important bit of information that a lot of our patients seem NOT to be aware of is that MSP verifies your eligibility for the plan every year, once you are enrolled, by checking your tax records through CCRA (Revenue Canada). So, (and this is IMPORTANT) if you have NOT filed your taxes by April 30th, for the previous year, not only are you NOT eligible for premium assistance until you do, but if you are already on the plan, you lose your status. Your monthly premiums go to the full amount (and they will eventually bill you!) and you are longer covered at the chiropractor's (etc.) office. This can come as a shock to many people who have put off going to the chiropractor until they are in excruciating pain and when they arrive at the office they 'find out' that MSP says "this is not an insurable benefit for this patient", and that they will have to pay the full $30.00. When they are advised that ..."perhaps their status has changed because their income has increased and they are no longer eligible"...(No?) Well, "perhaps they have not filed their taxes?" (h-m-m, seems they've put off more than chiropractic care, eh?) Again, this seems to be a little bit of information that is not disseminated by the government plan very well. Please NOTE: To retain your "exempt" status (on Premium Assistance) you MUST file your taxes!

I hope this information has been helpful to some of you. I have had patients come back into the office and tell me that not only did they qualify for the full benefit, meaning they are fully subsidized and pay nothing for their medical insurance, but because they had already paid for several months of their premiums, they had gotten a cheque back from medical! Please keep in mind, we are talking about the government here and it may TAKE SEVERAL MONTHS FOR THEM TO RESPOND TO YOU. DO NOT GIVE UP. CALL, WRITE, EMAIL. NOTE: If you do NOT know what your status is, I can check your status over the phone through an electronic information system. I can usually do this within five minutes and your new status is usually available on this information system LONG before you would be advised.

I have had many, many patients apply for premium assistance only after I had explained how it works, because they simply didn't know.

The forms to apply for Premium Assistance are available at our office. These forms are not usually available at medical doctors' offices because, of course, it doesn't effect their billings nor do you, as a patient, have to pay for most services at a medical doctors office. You can also access this information and apply on-line at www.healthservices.gov.bc.ca/msp. Their toll free phone number is 1-800-663-7100. But be prepared for patience if phoning, it can take days to get through.

Please pass this information on to your family, friends, neighbours. This is a benefit for which many of us are eligible and, afterall (editorial note), we know that the government is truly "concerned about our seniors and families", right?

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