Quality of insurance coverage, efficiency and effectiveness of new insurance plan among targets of the committee
The federal government’s switch in providers to the Public Service Health Care Plan (PSHCP) has apparently caused issues for public service workers, and a parliamentary committee will now investigate the situation.
The standing committee on government operations and estimates adopted a motion last week to examine what is described as the “Canada Life fiasco,” according to a CBC report.
By adopting the motion, the committee is agreeing to "devote at least one meeting to carrying out this study," and share its findings with the House of Commons, according to the report.
A list of witnesses was supposed to have been given to the committee clerk on Friday.
Recently, Ottawa picked Sun Life to help with the rollout of the Canadian Dental Care Plan. The federal government awarded up to $15 million to Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada under an Early Work Agreement.
Focus of investigation of providers
The PSHCP, the largest health care plan in the country, switched providers from Sun Life Financial to Canada Life Assurance Company on July 1. The move affected over 1.7 million federal public servants, retirees and their dependents.
The parliamentary committee will look into the following, CBC reports:
- quality of insurance coverage
- efficiency and effectiveness of new insurance plan, particularly online claims and telephone service
- mechanisms used by Public Services and Procurement Canada to award the contract
- measures that will be put in place to "restore the situation."
Two-thirds (66 per cent) of working Canadians who have access to employer-provided benefits rate their overall wellbeing as good or excellent, compared to 49 per cent of those without these benefits, according to a previous report.
In 2020, in light of the financial impacts that the Phoenix payroll system has had on public servants, the federal government has introduced a claims process allowing eligible employees, both current and former, to request compensation for severe financial costs and lost investment income.