Ottawa

‘It’s a clarification’

The CBC obtains documents that add to the mystery of Jason Kenney’s refugee health care reforms.

A notice of looming cuts to health services for refugees was mailed to more than 104,000 beneficiaries — including about 14,000 the federal government now says won’t be stripped of their supplementary medical services — and opposition MPs say it shows the government has flip-flopped on a contentious policy change … “The Interim Federal Health Plan has been reformed. As of June 30, 2012, benefits will be reduced for all current and future beneficiaries,” the notice reads. It goes on to say that “prescription drug benefits are being reduced for all beneficiaries,” and that “vision care, dental care, devices to assist mobility, home care and long-term care will no longer be covered.”

But now, Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney says government-sponsored refugees will be eligible for the full range of supplemental health benefits — raising questions about whether the government back-tracked on a policy that was lambasted by physicians across the country.

See previously: Did Jason Kenney change his mind?

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