The Costs – Premium
Persons insured under a private
plan must pay a premium, whether
or not they purchase
prescription drugs. In most
cases, they pay the premium in
the form of regular payroll
deductions throughout the year.
The amount of the premium is
negotiated between the
policyholder and the
insurer, and the group plan sponsor chooses the insurer.
About income tax returns
When doing their
income tax return, taxpayers must
indicate whether they were covered
during the year by a private plan or
by the public plan.
Persons under age
65 who were covered by a private
plan during the entire year don't pay the public plan premium.
However, those who were covered by a
private plan during part of the year
must pay the public plan
premium
for the rest of the year by
completing Attachment K of their
Québec income tax return.
Persons age 65
or over who are covered by a
private plan must pay particular
attention when completing their
income tax return. Those who have
basic coverage (at least equal to
public plan coverage) are not
required to pay the public plan
premium. However, those who have
only
supplemental coverage are
required to have the basic coverage
of the public plan and must
therefore pay the premium applicable
to their situation by completing
Attachment K of their Québec income
tax return.
Please note
Persons who are
eligible for a private plan must join
that plan. Those who don't must pay
the public plan premium, without
being entitled to any of its
benefits. Because they are supposed
to be covered by the private plan
for which they are eligible,
they are not allowed to register for
the public plan. Similarly, persons
who don't register for the public
plan even though they are eligible
for it must nevertheless pay the
public plan premium. In other words,
these persons pay a premium but have
no coverage. How can they avoid this
situation? By registering without
delay for the plan for which they
are eligible!
