We all have a role to play in creating an equitable and inclusive city.

The following advocacy tools and resources are for frontline workers.

They provide helpful information about services available to people who are undocumented, as well as tools for advocating for access to service.

Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP) Resource Hub

This resource hub is intended to support refugee patients and the providers who care for them in navigating essential healthcare services given the new Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP) co-payments.

Here, you will find information about refugee-friendly providers and clinics (including those offering co-pay waivers), affordable services, and health benefits available through social assistance (Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program). This is a work in progress—please consult this site regularly for updates!

Stop Cuts To Refugee Health Care

Newborn OHIP eligibility for undocumented parents

  • Babies born in Ontario to parents who live in Ontario are legally eligible for OHIP, even if the parents do not have status. Check out the resources below for more information.

  • Babies born in Canada are citizens by birth. In order for babies to qualify for provincial health insurance in Ontario, they must be born in Ontario; their parents/guardians must stay in the province with them for 4 out of 12 months; and one parent/guardian must be a resident of the province. The baby’s eligibility to access OHIP is not dependent on their parent’s status. However, in practice, many families report that their babies have been declared ineligible by hospital staff.

    Receiving a health card at birth is crucial for protecting the health of our youngest Ontarians. Not providing OHIP to eligible babies in a timely way can lead to delayed care, high costs for families and potentially adverse health outcomes for these children. 

    To address this, the HNUC developed a resource package aimed at midwives, hospital staff and service providers to support their advocacy efforts for eligible babies to receive OHIP at birth. To access the full package, email us at uninsurednetwork@gmail.com. 

  • To access the full package, email us at uninsurednetwork@gmail.com. 

    LINKS:

  • If you are working with a birth parent who has been denied OHIP for their newborn at a hospital or Service Ontario office, please fill out this short form. Each time you witness a denial, please fill it out. You do not need to provide your name or role; all responses will remain anonymous.

    Newborn OHIP Denial Reporting Form

Advocating for hospital care coverage

  • From March 2020 to March 2023, uninsured people did not need to pay in order to seek essential medical care in hospitals. If your clients received bills for care provided during that time, we have kept links below to the MOH Directive as well as a template advocacy letter. No fees should have been charged to people during this period.

    As of April 1, 2023, this has changed - the provincial government cut this vital program and people are now being asked to pay to seek care. You can support your clients to set up payment plans so they do not need to pay the entire cost of care at once. See the Healthcare Services section for more tips.

  • The Healthcare For All Coalition is a group of health care workers, organizations (including HNUC) and community members advocating for permanent access to healthcare for everyone in Ontario. We have come together to demand that the Ontario government implement permanent and adequate funding for medically necessary hospital and community-based health services for uninsured people. Click here to learn more about our demands.

Reports on Ontario’s Physician and Hospital Services for Uninsured Persons (PHSUP) Program

  • Read the full report here

  • Read the full report here

Legal rights for undocumented people

Group portrait of five women smiling
Portrait of a man wearing a baseball hat and glasses, holding his phone and smiling.

Sanctuary Cities

  • A “Sanctuary City” is a city with a policy that attempts to provide access to services for all people, regardless of immigration status.

  • In February 2013, Toronto became the first “sanctuary city” in Canada. This policy, which is formally referred to by the municipal government as “Access to City Services for Undocumented Torontonians (Access T.O.)”, directs city officials to:

    1. NOT ask about immigration status when providing select services,

    2. NOT deny a resident without permanent immigration status services that they are entitled to,

    3. NOT share personal or identifying information with federal authorities, unless required to do so by law.

    In other words, this policy attempts to provide protection and safety to residents without permanent immigration status with “don’t ask, don’t tell” practices by the city service providers, police or transit enforcement.

  • Municipal services that fall under this policy include recreational programs, libraries, City operated child care centres, emergency shelters, and some public health programs and transportation. Some municipal programs are governed at the federal and provincial level such as social assistance (Ontario Works), healthcare and housing, and the City has yet to fulfill their commitment in advocating at these government levels to gain broader and safe access to these services for undocumented people. In addition, the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) and the Toronto Police Services (TPS) continue to have practices that can put undocumented people at risk. For example, TTC officers have been known to ask for identification in suspected cases of “fare evasion”. Also, there is evidence documenting that the TPS collaborates with, and provides information to, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA). Additional resource allocation and commitment from the City of Toronto would help to strengthen implementation of the sanctuary policy.

  • As service providers, we encourage you to ensure the safety of residents without permanent immigration status by:

    • upholding and/or following this policy when working in our respective organizations, and unlearning our conscious or unconscious biases of who is deserving or undeserving of these services; and

    • encouraging our institutions to have or follow their own access without fear policies, if they do not already.

    We all have a role to play in creating a welcoming and inclusive sanctuary city. If you have any questions, feel free to email us at uninsurednetwork@gmail.com