I am pleased to announce that effective April 1st our government has now further reduced ambulance fees across the province. This follows a previous reduction that was effective January 1st, bringing a total decrease of $50 this year, and over the next three years, work will continue with representatives from the regional health authorities to further reduce fees.
Our mandate was to make sure ambulance fees are affordable for Manitobans living right across the province, with billings to Manitobans for ambulance services set to be reduced to either $425, or the pre-existing base fee established by the service provider (whichever is lower).
Ambulance services are outside the scope of the Canada Health Act and costs are the responsibility of the patient in jurisdictions across the country. In Manitoba, land ambulance services are delivered by a combination of providers including regional health authorities and other service providers under agreement with regional health authorities, such as municipalities or First Nation communities. Ambulance fees vary by the provider offering the service. Client fees are used to offset the cost of operations, with the remainder of costs subsidized by the province and other organizations.
The province already provides coverage for certain ambulance services including: inter-facility transfers between health-care facilities; the Northern Patient Transportation Program, which subsidizes medically necessary transportation for residents in the north; helicopter transportation to patients requiring critical and emergent care within a 250-kilometre radius of Winnipeg; and the Lifeflight Air Ambulance program, which provides specialized inter-facility transport for critically ill or injured Manitoba residents who live further than 200 km from Winnipeg.
For more information on ambulance fees in Manitoba, visit gov.mb.ca.
