Assistance to Constituents
Did you know that your MPP’s office is available to help you navigate government systems? This summer saw MPP Fairclough engage on a wide variety of topics to help local constituents navigate Ontario Government processes.
For example, we recently saw an uptick in the number of people running in to problems when they were attempting to renew their health cards. Below you can read the issues they had and how our office was able to help these constituents renew their OHIP cards.
Situation 1:
A constituent contacted MPP Fairclough’s office as Service Ontario would not issue them a new health card. Their health card had expired during the pandemic (when usage extensions were granted to expired cards) which made immediate renewal less of a priority. Their wallet was then stolen, so they lacked many other forms of valid ID. As such, they were not able to satisfy the ID requirement checklist needed for renewal at a Service Ontario location.
Our office asked them to fill out a consent form and gathered photocopies they had of prior pieces of ID, as well as a copy of their lease. We engaged with the Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery and Procurement (which oversees Service Ontario) to explain the situation and submit supporting documentation. They processed the OHIP card renewal, informed the constituent of their new 2-letter OHIP access code, and later mailed them the physical card.
Situation 2:
An Ontario-born man approached our office as he recently returned to Canada after living abroad for several years. Prior to moving he had lived in various Canadian provinces (due to the nature of his work).
One of the requirements of gaining an OHIP card is proving residency. When citizens return home from another country, this can generally be satisfied by spending a couple of months becoming reestablished and then submitting copies of their bills. In this case waiting was not an option however, as the man unfortunately had urgent medical issues and needed immediate treatment.
Our office initially tried to engage with the Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery and Procurement, but the constituent’s account had been locked due to living outside of Ontario for so long. We then engaged with the Ministry of Health and requested they open an OHIP Eligibility Review Committee file for the constituent. Their file and circumstances were reviewed, and they were then granted a health card. The constituent was able to attend medical appointments days after being granted approval.