Members of the Union of Taxation Employees (UTE) gathered outside Canada Life’s Ottawa office this week to voice their frustrations over ongoing issues with the healthcare plans of over a million public servants.
Canada Life has reported processing close to eight million claims from federal government employees and retirees since it took over the administration of the Public Service Health Care Plan (PSHCP) from Sun Life in July.
But plan members said they continue to face obstacles related to service accessibility, customer support, and claims reimbursements.
UTE’s Wednesday rally involved over 50 members who held signs with messages like “Canada Life or Death?” and “You are 10,000th in Line,” according to a report by Ottawa Citizen.
“Shame on Canada Life and Treasury Board, again, for the bad service, or the lack of service or the absence of service that our members are getting,” Marc Brière, the union’s national president, said at the protest.
UTE members have been incurring substantial out-of-pocket expenses and are struggling to reach customer support, he said, adding that those who manage to contact Canada Life receive conflicting information on how to deal with the issues.
Last week, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates adopted a motion to look into what it called the “Canada Life fiasco.”
CBC News reported that the parliamentary committee will investigate issues such as the quality of insurance coverage, the efficiency and effectiveness of Canada Life’s services, and the mechanisms used by Public Services and Procurement Canada to award the $514-million contract.
“They have until January 1 to get their act together, supposedly, but right now, today, people are suffering,” Brière said via the Ottawa Citizen.
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