Laurie,

That is great that you have that available and it was very nice of you to share with your fellow canadians. It would be nice if we had something like that here in the states. I am fortunate (?) that I reached my out of pocket maximum with my insurance earlier this year, so my ostomy supplies the last few months were nothing out of pocket for me. Unfortunately my surgery in October was an out of network provider, so a whole different deductible and out of pocket maximum. Those of you in countries where you don’t have to deal with health insurance are lucky. 

@squeakyandliza

Liza, we still have (voluntary) supplemental insurance here in Canada for things like  medication, ostomy supplies, dental, glasses - our healthcare system isn’t as good as the National Health Service in the UK. But, we will not go broke because of illness. During my cancer treatment and 5 year cancer surveillance, the only thing I had to pay for was parking at the hospital. 

It makes me angry when wealthy countries like the US don’t have universal healthcare. There just is no reason that it couldn’t happen. Our healthcare here wasn’t always universal. It started when Saskatchewan Premier Tommy Douglas (a revered Canadian hero, and Keifer Sutherland’s grandfather) made it law in that province in 1962. Doctors didn’t take it well. They embarked on a campaign of propaganda, warning that universal healthcare would mean the end of medicine in Canada, and they even went on strike for nearly a month. They had to back down, and that opened the door for the other provinces to follow suit. It actually wasn’t until 1984, with the Canada Health Act, that the entire country was finally unified in providing healthcare to everyone in the country. 

This is a long winded way of saying that it is possible in your country too. There will be a lot of pushback - more from insurance companies than doctors - but it is still worth fighting for. No one EVER should go broke because of illness in a wealthy country. Let’s hope that the new administration in your country will change the current healthcare system, and make it fair for everyone. People need to contact their elected officials to tell them what they want. Believe me - I do it on a regular basis - they’re no doubt sick of hearing from me, but at least they know what I’m thinking 🤔. As they say, it’s the squeaky wheel that gets the grease. But then, you know all about Squeaky 😀.

Laurie

How did I miss this post?!! 

I've been a PC Optimum (PC Points, whatever the new name is!) for years and use it pretty much only when grocery shopping as I don't tend to go to shoppers, but it's earned me well over $1000 in free groceries alone. 

Well, well worth it if you shop any of the Loblaws owned companies!

@veganostomy

I find that I have to order ostomy supplies from Wellwise, as they don’t keep what I want in stock anymore, at least not enough because I buy enough to get me through several months. It usually takes about 4 - 5 days for an order to come in. So I make sure that when I order supplies, I pay for my order on the 20 X the points days so I get the points. Also, it’s a better deal if you don’t use your points to buy ostomy supplies on the 20 X days because I don’t think you get points if you’re using points to pay. 

Laurie

@veganostomy...this may not belong here ...but Eric its coming to tax time and I can't remember what te yearly Tax Credit is for Canadians to claim. Can you point me in the right direction of that please. I think I have missed it the last 2 yrs & would like to make sure. 

Thank you for your time. 

Linda

@dlkfiretruck

Linda, it’s the Disability Tax Credit. There is a process to go through to get the thumbs up from CRA to claim this, though. It requires an application and your doctor has to fill in part of it. CRA is notoriously difficult when it comes to ostomates getting approval for this, and I know several people who have been denied the tax credit when they should have been approved. If you, or anyone on this site needs help with this, I will be happy to share what I presented to my local ostomy support group about my successful application.

Laurie

@dlkfiretruck Yes, @tigerlily is correct. It's the Disability Tax Credit, which I wrote about here: https://www.veganostomy.ca/canadian-disability-tax-credit/

If you haven't been approved yet, they should be able to backdate when you finally do. It helps to have a cooperative doctor for the application. Good luck!

@veganostomy

Eric, I hadn’t seen what you had written on the DTC until now. Thanks for an excellent, comprehensive article on it. The only thing I would add is that one should NEVER leave the application to one’s doctor to complete and send in. My surgeon made a mistake on mine (she mistakenly ticked the box that said my condition would improve - which suggested that my ostomy might be temporary) which, if I hadn’t caught, would have nixed my application right there. A friend also was denied her DTC because of a mistake her doctor made, and it took her 10 years to re-file (I helped her, and she was approved, AND got 10 years of unclaimed credit!).

Be aware that the CRA may have questions for your doctor, and may send another form to your doctor. This may be time sensitive!! Your doctor may have a month to send it in, so be sure to let your doctor know that this is a possibility.  It’s also very important to keep a copy of the application you send in; the CRA may have questions for you, and you will want to be able to refer to what you said. Give a copy of your application to your doctor, so that he/she will have it in your file if he/she is required to submit another form.

Eric is absolutely right about the need for detail in your application. You have to assume that the reader knows nothing about ostomies - it’s up to the applicant to explain everything in great detail, so after reading your application, the reader will have no difficulty understanding why you should be granted the DTC. I often joke that my goal in writing my application was to make the reader want to vomit - that way, there could be no misunderstanding about how complicated an ostomy has made my life.😄

Laurie

Posted by: @tigerlily

The only thing I would add is that one should NEVER leave the application to one’s doctor to complete and send in.

That's a good reminder. I did write "I would HIGHLY suggest that you make an appointment with your doctor and have them complete the form while you are there. That way, you’re able to answer any questions they may have."

And I agree that just dropping it off would be a bad idea (not that my doctor would fill out forms without me making an appointment first! LOL). 

Thank you Both  So Very Much!! This is all great information. lol...part of my issue is I'm pretty sure I was approved a few Years back but think  it was only claimed the first year thinking it was automatic. Is it automatic if you've been approved?? So,  now with post concussion trauma, diagnosed at the time I'm sure it was applied for, enter memory issues,  and my stupid eye balls, burning inflamation, add cataracts, I'm feel like I'm  banging my head against the wall!! I don't mean to whine but occasionally an explanation for stupidity is required to hopefully save face!!! lol!! 

I've been going thru every single one of my incomtax papers I've kept over the years, which is all of them, but  between my brain & eyes its so frustrating even in steps. Yup...I could cry but refuse too! There are other more serious things to cry about in life and others so much worse off, so I don't, won't & can't. lol...aahhh...life! 

So, my big question is...if I were to call Canada Revenue, would I really get a human, or, be on hold running in a loop like today with no answers,  and would they tell me if I had  qualified for it previously to save going thru all these papers & literally , headaches??   My Iron is 2 and I'm drained but, on a good note...I start infusions again tomorrow, Friday. Yay!!!!!

Also...can I reapply if my Doctor never put a start date on it??

Thank you both for you help  & Information. 

Posted by: @dlkfiretruck

Is it automatic if you've been approved??

No, and they tend to ask you to reconfirm your disability every two years or so. Some applications will have an "end date" on it, but others (like mine) are indefinite - I still have to let them know that my permanent ostomy is still here.  

Posted by: @dlkfiretruck

So, my big question is...if I were to call Canada Revenue, would I really get a human

In my experience, it's really difficult to get through by phone. 

Posted by: @dlkfiretruck

Also...can I reapply if my Doctor never put a start date on it??

I believe there is another form you can fill out, but I don't honestly remember. It would totally be worth looking into as they should be able to backdate up to 10 years. 

@veganostomy...Thank you so much!! I had that feeling I'd be starting over in this whole thing. Last time, I remember keeping a paper on  how often I was emptying in one week & approx. how much.  Even my GP had no clue it was that bad. There was a lot of understanding from him after that. 

I followed your advice back then and will again, and because of it after a fourth time paying, I was approved! Unfirtunatly I found out the person doing my incomtax did not believe this was a disability & never listened to me to aim it with incomtax. Than you Eric so much for all your work & fabulous videos!! 

@Tigerlily.. .Thank you Laurie for your input also. My 1st 4 applications I made the mistake of leaving them with my doctor and not concentrating on guts & bathroom time alone! . It was good to be reminded of what not to do as it only takes a few min. for them to fill in what needs to be done!

Linda.

@dlkfiretruck

Linda, one of the pluses of doing a diary of the ostomy experience for our doctors is that it informs them about what it is really like for us living with an ostomy. There is just SO much ignorance and misinformation out there, including among medical professionals, which is so discouraging and potentially harmful. A gentleman in my ostomy support group told me that his GP wouldn’t fill out his DTC form because she said he didn’t qualify. Ridiculous! Even more reason to be grateful for all the information Eric has put together on this site.👍🏆🥇

Laurie

Monday is a 20 X the points day! That’s tomorrow, January 11, and it only lasts for that day. I just got notified on the app today, so if any of you Canadians need ostomy supplies, consider getting a PC Optimum card and heading to Wellwise to order supplies.

Laurie