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No Ambulance Fees for Medical Emergencies

Full Title:
Emergency Health Services Act (amended)

Summary#

This bill changes Nova Scotia’s Emergency Health Services law to stop charging patients for ambulance rides when they are medically necessary. It also covers ambulance transfers between hospitals or other health facilities.

  • Ends patient fees for medically necessary ambulance services.
  • Includes inter-facility transfers (moves between hospitals or clinics).
  • Patients would not receive a bill for these ambulance trips.
  • Non-medical or non-urgent rides are not covered by this change.

What it means for you#

  • Residents and patients

    • You would not be billed for a medically necessary ambulance ride.
    • If you need to be moved from one hospital to another, you would not pay a transfer fee.
    • If an ambulance ride is not medically necessary (for example, a ride for convenience), this law does not require it to be free.

  • Families and caregivers

    • Less worry about the cost when calling 911 for a true emergency.
    • No bills for medically necessary hospital-to-hospital transfers for your family member.

  • Seniors and people with low incomes

    • Removes a cost that can be hard to pay during a health crisis.
    • Lowers the risk of delaying a 911 call because of ambulance fees.

  • Visitors to Nova Scotia

    • The bill says users cannot be charged for medically necessary ambulance services. It does not limit this to residents.

Expenses#

No publicly available information.

Proponents' View#

  • Removes a major cost barrier so people do not delay calling 911 in an emergency.
  • Reduces financial stress and surprise bills during a health crisis.
  • Treats medical emergencies like other insured health care by making it free at the point of use.
  • Speeds up hospital-to-hospital transfers by taking billing out of the way.
  • Could improve health outcomes by getting patients to care faster.

Opponents' View#

  • Shifts costs from patients to taxpayers and could strain the provincial health budget.
  • May lead to more non-urgent ambulance calls, increasing wait times.
  • Could require more ambulances and staff to handle higher demand.
  • Leaves questions about who decides what is “medically necessary” and how disputes are handled.
  • Without clear funding, hospitals and emergency services may face budget pressure.