The Northern Health Travel Grant (NHTG) helps individuals get needed medical treatment if they cannot do so locally.

Travel expenses when a person or family have to regularly visit a hospital or medical specialist can add up quickly, and this grant helps with this if you have to travel at least 100-kilometres one-way to access these services.

In 2019, Thunder Bay-Atikokan MPP Judith Monteith-Farrell introduced Bill-144, the Northern Health Travel Grant Advisory Committee Act which she says will improve this grant system. Monteith-Farrell has been critical of the NHTG, and argues not all costs are covered for Northern families and reimbursements are miniscule compared to the costs.

“In some cases, people just don’t have those resources, and what happens then,” explained Monteith-Farrell during a press conference Friday. “I have stories of people who have years of bills and financially they are struggling, and others who are just not accessing healthcare because they cannot get the money upfront.

“There are many areas where the Northern Health Grant needs to be more accessible, and even during the pandemic they weren’t even hearing appeals for an entire year. The delays are very frustrating, but they are also for many devastating financially.”

During the announcement the MPP was joined by Thunder Bay residents Margaret Rae and Joseph Beg, who echoed her claims as they have yet to receive their reimbursements after an extended period of critical health care travel for their child.

The Bill currently remains in committee.