“What is the difference between BCMSP and the Greenshield extended health and dental plan?”

BCMSP, or, British Columbia Medical Services Plan is the government health care program that provides the majority of health care services to residents of British Columbia. If you are an international student, you are responsible for paying for this, and you should register for a BCMSP card as soon as you arrive in Canada. You can do so here: 

However, not everything is covered by BCMSP, and that’s where Greenshield comes in. Other services that don’t fall under BCMSP that most people need regularly may be covered by Greenshield, and when you go access a healthcare service you should always have your BCMSP card and Greenshield ID number ready with you.

“Can I opt-out of the Health and Dental plan if I have other extended health benefits?

Yes. However, BCMSP is not an extended benefits plan and is not equivalent coverage for opting out. The deadline to opt out is September 15th, at 11:59pm. Any opt outs submitted after this date will not be accepted. The opt-out process requires some administration on our side. Once we have approved the request, the University finance area will adjust your student account to remove the Extended Health and Dental Benefits plan fee. Opt-out requests made before August 19th will be processed during the week of August 19th-23rd.

“Can I opt in if I’m taking 3 credits?” 

No, only students in six credits or more can be on the benefits plan. We coordinate our plans with other students across the province and this eligibility requirement is the shared agreement in order to continue balancing good benefits with a reasonable price.

“Last year I couldn’t access my plan until October - is that going to happen again this year?”

Yes. This is called the coverage blackout period. We had to change our operations last year in order to further align with standard practices for student insurance plans across other students’ unions and universities. In the past we have not had our system operate this way but we needed to change it to make it equal and fair across BC. From September 1st to approximately October 15th you will be in what is called a coverage “black out” period.

During this time you will not be active in the Greenshield system and will not be able to use the plan for direct billing. If you have to pay for extended health or dental services during the black out period, please save your receipts and you will be able to file a claim and get your reimbursement after October 15th. We will send you an email when your account is active. This means that you will be enrolled in our plan for the coverage period of September 1, 2024 - August 31, 2025 once the enrolment is confirmed from the University.

If you had the plan for the 2023-2024 benefit year your coverage period is active until August. 31st, 2024. If you expect the blackout period to be a problem for you, we encourage you to fill any prescriptions of have any services before the end of August.

“How do I know if I'm automatically enrolled in the plan?”

If you are enrolled in 6 or more credits, and have not previously opted out, then you are automatically enrolled in the plan and the health and dental fee will be charged to your account. This is slightly different than in previous years as it used to be 9 or more credits. In Spring 2021, students voted to lower the automatic enrollment to 6 credits to ensure that as many students as possible have access to extended health care. This includes students with disabilities who are considered full-time at 6 credits but were never automatically included in our system. This decision was inspired by universal design and the idea that collective services like health care should be available to as many people as possible.

“I opted out before because I had other coverage, but I lost that coverage. Can I get back in on the plan?”

Yes. You can reinstate your coverage. Please email info@ecsu.ca before September 15th 2024 to get more information.