I believe it would stand for employee. Forms that my hubby has filed out in the past have had sections to fill out and employees where told that EE stands for employee EE/spouse stands for employee and spouse EE/family stands for employee and family which includes spouse and children I assume it would be the same for all forms but I'm not sure. Fran

I'm talking doctors mostly. Since I have to have health insurance I'd rather pay for something I might, possibly use as opposed to something I definitely won't use. I do not currently take any prescriptions - but I occasionally take things for Lyme disease.

frmrsdghtr - you summed it up perfectly. We live in Ontario and are under 65 - not by much, but still, under 65, which does make a difference (joyfulguy - you are over 65 so would benefit from many things that we do not). OHIP (the Ontario Health Plan) is about to cut many services (eyes - and I don't mean "normal" eye care) - I mean for people like my husband who has had a vitrectomy and cataract surgery. People who are diabetics often have major eye problems etc. and this will affect them - and not all are obese. My husband's eyes are bad enough that one of his eye specialists (he has 3) has been able to run his quarterly eye tests through OHIP, but at his May 8 appointment he was told that he would not be able to do this any longer - and his office plan won't cover it. My husband pays high premiums for family coverage (just the two of us) - yet has deductibles of $1,250 for EACH of medical and dental - so we basically pay for everything due to the deductibles - and since he has only one prescription for eye drops and I have one prescription we are not your "normal" Cdns. Even his office health care provider remarked that for people paying such high premiums we had very few claims (well, they wouldn't pay for his vitrectomy rehab equipment, nothing towards his sleep apnea dental appliance, his office dental plan does not cover specialists (and his regular dentist - an oral surgeon, no longer does root canals) plus there is the deductible problem. Back in the day your GP could zap a wart - now you need to be referred to a derm (heck, I could do it). I had several moles develop suddenly on my neck last year - it took over 6 months to get a derm appointment - and that was with a different derm - first one was going to be 9 months - and both required referrals from my GP. Yet, if I wanted to have something cosmetic done, I could have been seen next day. I have searched the OHIP site but little has been posted yet. The news showed the cost of the glaucoma test being $63.00 with OHIP paying the doctors $25.00 - but that must be for the cost of the equipment, because my husband pays over $200 for each test, so I think they need to get the facts straight. Fees to radiologists are being cut back which will affect mammograms (techs do the mammos but they are read by the radiologist so I guess backlog will come into play, and EKGs. Certain heart tests are being cut as well. I know that if you need a lower back X-Ray it will have to be seriously justified by your doctor. Every time I am supposed to have a bone density test (despite confirming day before) I arrive and am told that I can't have it for another year or two - but I am welcome to pay for it. I fully expect to never be able to get one again! According to my pharmacist, retired people post 65 can have their prescriptions covered, but they must take Generic pills. I can't take Generics - it isn't the meds factor, it is the non-medicinal ingredients I am allergic to - as are many others - and many seniors are paying the substantial difference themselves. My husband recently had a discussion with a N.Y. taxi driver who told him how lucky he was to live in Canada where dental, medical and vision (even glasses) are 100% paid for. My husband tried to set him straight - but the guy didn't believe him. I have had the same discussions in the U.S. and people think I am wrong. As if, I live here. My husband's cousin had to travel from Ontario to the Mayo Clinic to be diagosed with ALS (no one saw that one coming). She had been falling down for well over a year and it was going to take her another year to be seen by a specialist - so they paid to go to Mayo - and this was the horrible result. She is 54 years old. I know what the cost was to go to the Mayo Clinic and I think they could have bought a house in Michigan for less. If we need an MRI we can get it much more quickly in the U.S. - but we have to pay for it. Same with tests for prostate cancer etc. Is our health care better than what you have in the U.S. - DEFINITELY. Is it the health care that people think we have - NO. And let's not forget that we pay very high taxes and do not enjoy the many deductions that Americans have. There would have to be some give and take for the Americans to have our plans. Of course people who work for the government or are represented by strong unions (teachers, postal workers etc.) have excellent pension plans and retirement benefits. The average person working in private business does not. That would be us. If we take out private plans such as Blue Cross the costs are high - much like in the U.S. - and coverage is minimal - not to mention that everything seems to be pre-existing. When you read the list I don't think there is anything that the normal person hasn't experienced at least once in their respective lifetime. This is definitely not the time for my husband to be facing retirement - the economy is horrible - here as well - and we have been earning nil on our investment funds. But our banking laws are a lot better! Actually, the mail just arrived - bringing with it a letter from my husband's GP advising of the cost of this year's premium to cover non-insured services - I have the same with my doctor - it is about $100 - $125.00 for individual coverage. I am very happy with his doctor - for the first time they are offer fees for Individuals, COUPLES, or Families. There are many couples such as us who pay for people with several kids etc., yet we do not get one single tax break - period.

Seniors in Ontario pay a co-pay of $2 or $3 for their prescriptions. I have never had issues with our health care. I can see my doctor usually the same day I call him and if he isn't available his clinic is open. In Ontario we get letters to remind us to get mammograms, colonoscopys and for men Prostrate screening. I can usually get a mammogram the within a few days or week of requesting one. I know in other cities there is a longer wait time and some patients are sent here. I don't take any prescription medications but when I have had the need for prescription medications in the past for acid reflux my Doctor knows I don't have prescription coverage so his nurse makes arrangements with the drug rep who dropped off boxes of the medicaiton I needed and I only had to go back to my Doctor to pick it up. I just let them know when I was running short. From what I have heard our prescription drug prices for the most part cost a lot less for the same prescription drug in the US. Right now Insulin seems to bring American's over here to pick up what they need for a much lesser cost. One thing I could never understand is some Doctors here will ask you to pay $100-200 a year if you are one of their patients. My Doctor has never done this but some of my friends family gps require this. I don't know if it is for Drs. notes, or to have prescriptions refilled. Some doctors do charge for having to call the pharmacy for your refills, mine doesn't. I must say the medical care my family members have received has been excellent. My older sister has had heart issues her entire life, had 2 hip replacements, 2 pacemakers, 2 different breast cancers, lung cancer, surgeries and the only thing she had to pay for besides some prescription meds before she became a senior was taxi rides to and from her appointments. My sister had daily medical care through CCAC - Community Care Access Centre. Twice a day a nurse would come to the house to give her IV antibiotics, she had a daily personal care worker come in to bath her and help her get dressed. When she was diagnosed with lung cancer and moved in with me so I could care for her I was provided with all the equipment I needed for her - a hospital bed. commode, she had oxygen and a weekly visit from the oxygen therapist, nurse practioners coming to the house, Hospice doctors, night nurse when I needed to get some sleep, she had a ventalyn machine and the meds to help her breath. If she fell or I needed help moving her I just had to call the EMS and they would come to help. Not a penny was paid out for any of this care or equipment. CCAC even paid for the private transport ambulance to take her to her chemotherapy appointments. She was put on a new chemo drug that cost over $700 a pill that was paid for but the doctor had to apply to OHIP for that to be covered. Same excellent health care for my other sister and my Mom who had long term Alzheimer's and pancreatic cancer who I took care of at home My cousin was diagnosed with breast cancer this time last year and she had the surgery the same week. Our health care isn't perfect, there are long wait times for certain procedures and long wait times at the ER. We have a doctor shortage especially for some specialists in Windsor. Right now there are only about 8 Family Doctors taking new patients but if you don't have a family doctor there is a clinic right around the corner and you can see any doctor there. Some procedures aren't covered like they used to be covered. If you need a mole removed you have to pay for it, I don't know what the other things are. We do pay for our health care through our taxes and through our employers but you never have to worry about paying up front to see your doctor or for most procedures. What OHIP covers https://www.ontario.ca/page/what-ohip-covers#section-0