By Chris Beach

Northern View

Northern View – Is it time to do away with MSP premiums for international students?

Dec 21, 2022 | 12:02 PM

In the 2017 BC Election the NDP promised to do away with MSP premiums, the monthly fee British Columbians use to pay for healthcare in the province.

It proved to be a popular policy as the NDP secured a minority government and after finally delivering on the promise in January of 2020, they got re-elected to a majority government that Fall.

However, at the same time, Victoria decided that not only would international students keep paying the premium, but they would double it to $75.00. Now that might not seem like a lot of money for some of us, but if you’re a full-time student and already paying tuition fees, books, rent, food, working part-time and trying to keep up with your studies, this extra $75 a month is adding to an already very stressful situation.

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Don’t forget, for a lot of these students their families pooled their savings to be able to send them here – one child in the family – and once they’re here, they have to pay their own way. And let’s also not forget these are very young heathy people who are not posing an undue burden on the healthcare system, and like the rest of us pay federal and provincial taxes on goods and services every day.

More importantly, it’s a question of fairness. These students are putting a lot of time, money and effort into bettering themselves and maintaining and improving our economy – now and in the future – by filling jobs in virtually every industry and sector across BC, from hospitals to retail chains.

If were not for international students here in Prince George, there would be very little staff and service at places like Walmart, Superstore, McDonald’s, hotels, gas stations, you name it. Long story short, we depend on these students and they are not at a stage in their lives when they should be – nor can afford to be – paying more than the rest of for healthcare.

So now that Premier Eby has magically stumbled upon over $5 billion in newly found provincial riches, it’s high time he righted this wrong and gave international students the same break we all got 3 years ago. My name is Chris Beach and this is the Northern View.

Editors note: The views expressed in this column do not necessarily represent the views of Pattison Media.