Government Relations Report Ron Steeves First Vice-President This fall, voters in Quebec and New Brunswick will go to the polls. The New Brunswick provincial election will be held on September 24th, while voters in Quebec will go to the polls on October 1st. In order to ensure that political issues of importance to our members remain part of the conversation, CSA staff is preparing provincial election handbooks for both provinces. These handbooks will outline the limitations of the respective province’s reimbursement rates for out-of-province medical care, as well as the differing policies on preservation of health coverage for frequent travellers, prescription drug allowances and many other issues of importance to Canadian travellers. Under the portability section of the Canada Health Act, insured Canadian residents – when temporarily absent from their home province and when outside of Canada –must continue to be covered for insured health services during their absence. When the insured services are provided outside of Canada, payment is supposed to be made on the basis of the amount that would have been paid by the province for similar services rendered in the province. This allows individuals to travel or be absent from their home province or territory, within a prescribed duration, while retaining their provincial health insurance coverage. As our election handbooks highlight, New Brunswick and Quebec are paying significantly lower than home-province rates for emergency hospital services received outside of Canada and are, thus, not meeting their obligations under the portability section of the Canada Health Act. These handbooks will be sent to the political parties in both provinces prior to the elections and will ask the leaders to clarify their positions on these important issues.They will also be mailed to our members in both provinces so that local residents can raise these issues with the candidates when they knock on the door and at local forums in the community. They are also a great resource that contains handy and important information regarding election times, dates, required identification and polling information. This fall, British Columbia is having a referendumon what voting systemwill be used for future provincial elections. The referendum will be held by mail and the voting period will extend from October 22, 2018 to November 30, 2018. Detailed information about the different voting systems will be available on the Elections BC website, elections.bc.ca. We have received confirmation fromElections BC that electors who are temporarily absent from the province during the voting period will be able to request a voting package while abroad. It is recommended that absent electors request their voting packages as soon as possible. Residents of British Columbia can ensure that their voter information is up to date by contacting Elections BC directly at 1-800661-8683, or by visiting elections.bc.ca/ovr. In response to the recent tariffs imposed by the U.S. Government on Canadian steel and aluminum, the Government of Canada has retaliated with a series of tariffs which includes a 10% surtax on more than 120 consumer goods originating from the United States.The 10% surtax came into effect on July 1, 2018 and is applicable on a wide range of goods such as washing machines, motorboats, ketchup and whiskey. The surtax applies to commercial shipments, as well as goods being imported by travellers above their personal exemptions. As a reminder, personal exemptions do not apply to same-day, cross-border shoppers. Canadian residents returning to Canada after an absence of seven days or longer can claim goods worth up to CAN$800 without paying any duty or taxes. A complete list of consumer goods subject to the 10% surtax can be accessed here, www.fin. gc.ca/access/tt-it/cacsap-cmpcaa-1-eng.asp. On July 26, U.S. Representatives Mike Quigley (D-IL) and TomRice (R-SC) reintroduced the Jobs Originating through Launching Travel Act or, as you may recall, the JOLT Act. This was the name of the legislation that contained our proposal for the creation of a Canadian Snowbird Visa in the last session of Congress. This version of the bill again includes language that would extend the stay of Canadian citizens over the age of 50 – who either own or rent property in the United States – from six to eight months in a 12-month period. A companion bill in the Senate is expected shortly. This means that we now have two significant bills in the U.S. House of Representatives and one in the Senate that potentially accomplish our goal. In no way does this conflict with existing house bill H.R. 3513, the Canadian Snowbird Visa Act that we have talked so much about during the last year. It is simply another card in the deck; if either of those bills was to pass in the House, then our visa passes in the House. It is essentially the same situation in the Senate. The bottom line is that our inclusion in the JOLT Act increases our odds of eventual passage. We will keep you apprised of our progress. CSANews | FALL 2018 | 11
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