Students that have resided in Nova Scotia for 12 consecutive months and have not left the province for more than 30 consecutive days may be eligible for provincial medical insurance known as MSI. An MSI card is available to Nova Scotia residents and provides hospital and physician treatment. However, MSI does not cover services such as prescription drugs, dental, ambulance or repatriation. MSI may not cover you while travelling outside of Nova Scotia or outside of Canada.

Getting your provincial health card

To submit an application and determine your eligibility for MSI, please contact the MSI office at 902-496-7008 or 1-800-563-8880(Toll free in Canada).

Annual renewal of MSI coverage

If you are eligible for provincial medical coverage (MSI), you must apply for for it annually as your card has an expiry date. You will be asked to prove that you have not left the province for more than 30 consecutive days (in addition to other requirements).

This Government of Nova Scotia-sponsored program is subject to change without notice.

Non-Emergencies

For non-emergencies, students are encouraged to use Guard.me’s Mobile Doctor or the Nancy Dingwall Health and Counselling Centre, which is now located in the MacDonald Residence temporarily and will later return to a permanent home in the renovated Canada Games Complex within CBU campus after construction is completed. It is staffed with a doctor, nurse and physiotherapist and can address minor, non-emergency issues. Hours of operation are Monday to Friday from 8:30am to 4:30pm.

Services include:

• Health counselling and education
• Medicals (subject to fee)
• Sexual health education
• Birth control information and emergency contraception (subject to fee)
• HIV education and testing (subject to fee)
• STI education and testing (subject to fee)
• Pregnancy testing
• Free condoms
• Injections (B12, immunizations, Depo Provera, allergy)
• First Aid
• Dressing and wound care
• Blood pressure and glucose monitoring
• Nursing information
• Diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of medical conditions.

To make an inquiry or to book an appointment, please call 902-563-1359 or email healthservices@cbu.ca.

For other clinics in surrounding areas, please use Guard.me’s Clinic Search.

Emergencies

In the event of emergency, please go to the nearest Emergency Department

In Sydney, the Emergency Department is located at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital

1482, George Street

Sydney, NS B1P 1P3
OR call 911

At CBU, we understand that taking care of our mental health is just as important as taking care of our physical health. CBU provides support for all students dealing with mental illness, including health conditions that disrupt a persons thoughts, emotions, relationships and daily functioning. To learn more about mental health resources at CBU, please click here.

CBU also offers free and confidential services with Personal Counsellors. Appointments can be by phone or through email to discuss a variety of issues including anger, parenting, grief, depression and anxiety, relationship issues, family conflict, time management, stress, financial concerns and couples counselling. Appointments are available Monday-Friday including some evenings. To book an appointment, contact the Nancy Dingwall Health and Counselling Centre at 902-563-1639 or email healthservices@cbu.ca.

CBU also offers keep.me.SAFE, which provides mental health services to all international students. keep.meSAFE is an innovative Student Support Program (SSP) that helps students by promoting early intervention and 24/7 access to mental health support. keep.me SAFE helps students manage their mental health so they can fully participate in academic life and complete their studies.

keep.meSAFE is the first support program to use linguistically and culturally matched licensed clinicians, providing students a welcoming place where they are comfortable to seek help.

Mental health and addiction crisis line 1-888-429-8167 available 24/7

For help finding local resources or to talk with a counselor call 211 available 24/7

To speak with a registered nurse call 811 available 24/7

Health forms and information are available at Guard.Me.

International students taking classes at CBU are automatically enrolled in the Guard.me international student health insurance plan. This plan will begin on the first day of your first semester in class or the date you arrive in Canada if you arrive after the first day. 

Students who arrive in Canada before the start of the semester can contact Guard.me directly to enrol in a student emergency plan, which will cover you until your CBU plan begins.

These plans are mandatory for all students studying in Canada.

All students studying at CBU are required to have health insurance. However, international students who have a Nova Scotia Government health insurance (MSI) card, valid until August 31st, 2023, have the option to opt out of the tier A plan and remain only in the tier B plan. Tier B covers items that MSI does not cover. For information on opting into the Tier B plan, please click here. 

International students who have insurance through their employer, or their spouses employer, may opt out of the CBU Tier A and Tier B plans if they can show proof to CBU that they have MSI AND an employee benefit insurance plan within the opt out period. They must continue to do this each year to remain out of the plan. This option is only available in September. Please contact your International Student Advisor via your Compass Student Account for more information.

Please watch your CBU email and the CBU website closely for information relating to your insurance plan, including the opt out period. Once the opt out period closes, you will no longer be able to make changes.

International students can learn more about Tier A of the plan by clicking here and about Tier B of the plan by clicking here.

Tier A is mandatory for students without Nova Scotia government insurance (MSI) card. Students with a Nova Scotia government insurance (MSI) card valid until August 31, 2024, can opt out of Tier A and remain only in Tier B.

For further detailed information, please review your policy documents through your Guard.me account.

The new plan comes in two tiers:

• International students who do not have Nova Scotia Government health insurance (MSI) card will be charged a full policy year (September 1, to August 31). This includes coverage for both Tier A and Tier B of the plan, including prescription drug coverage, vision care and dental care.
  • Sign into your CBU student account on or around September 30th and the cost of the plan.
• International students who have a Nova Scotia Government health insurance (MSI) card, valid until August 31, 2024, have the option to opt out of the Tier A plan and remain only on the Tier B program. Tier B covers and extensive list of services including prescription drugs, vision care and dental care.. For information on opting out of the Tier B program, including opt out period, please refer to https://www.guard.me/cbu/optout/opt-out.
  
  • Sign into your CBU student account on or around September 30th and the cost of the plan.

The international student health insurance fee will automatically be charged to your student account after the opt out period closes at the end of the month that you begin your studies.

For example, students who begin their studies in September will be charged on September 30. This would be the same for students who begin their studies in January or May.

While the policy year runs from September 1 to August 31, the cost of your plan will be pro-rated (while in Canada) if you start in January or May.

No, CBU does not profit financially from international student health insurance. Every cent of our students’ premium goes into paying for their insurance plan.

Guard.me is the number one international health insurer in the world. In consultation with the CBU Students’ Union, staff in the Nancy Dingwall Health and Counselling Centre and keeping in line with other universities in Atlantic Canada, this plan was the cheapest option with the best coverage, including enhanced prescription, vision and dental care.

We are confident that by continuing to work with Guard.me our students will be protected should they be faced with an unexpected illness or emergency.

Taking care of our mental health is just as important as taking care of our physical health as it includes our emotional, psychological and social well-being. There is a significant number of students who use keep.meSAFE on a regular basis. Because of this, it was determined that it would be best to keep this program.

By using keep.meSAFE, students will have access to a counsellor that speaks their language, is from their culture, or has a shared experience. Real-time support is available via telephone and chat. Appointment-based support is available over the phone, via video and in-person.

To learn more about keep.meSAFE, please click here.

The guard.me international health insurance program does not provide full coverage for pre-existing conditions. The intent of the guard.me international health insurance is to cover emergency health conditions that begin after you arrive in Canada and purchase your insurance coverage.

Examples of pre-existing conditions include:

• Ongoing, previously diagnosed conditions that you will require continued treatment upon departure from your home country.
• If you become pregnant more than 30 days before you leave your home country, your prenatal care nor delivery will be covered by guard.me.

Please refer to the limitations and exclusions section of your policy document for more information.

Eligibility refers to the expenses that qualify for coverage under the guard.me insurance policy.

An exclusion is something that does not qualify for coverage under your plan.

It is strongly recommended that you bring enough medication from your country of origin to provide treatment until you return to your home country.

The CBU guard.me international student health insurance plan will begin on September 1 or the date you arrive in Canada if you arrive after September 1, until August 31 of the next year. Students who begin their studies in Canada in January or May are enrolled in the coverage until August 31 of the same year.

Family members can be added to your plan for an additional fee and must be registered with guard.me within 10 days of receiving your insurance policy. It will be your responsibility to pay guard.me directly for any family members enrolled in the plan.

For more information, please click here or contact an International Student Advisor through your CBU Compass Account.

You will receive your policy information in your CBU email within 5 days of the opt out period closing. You will then be instructed to login and create an account with guard.me so you can access your insurance card.

If you haven’t received the email in that time, try searching your email inbox by typing guard.me in the search bar. Please be sure to also check your ‘Junk’ mailbox. If you are still having trouble finding it, contact an International Student Advisor through your Compass Student Account immediately.

We strongly encourage you to print a copy of your insurance card and keep it in your wallet or take a picture with your phone so you will have access to it in case of an emergency.

Your insurance card will be in the email you receive from guard.me and you can find it at the top of your claim form. Take a picture of it, or print it and keep a copy with you. Insurance card information will not be available from International Students Advisors on demand.

If you have an emergency and have to see a medical professional quickly, you are required to find your insurance card or contact guard.me directly.

We strongly encourage students to print out their health insurance card or take a photo of it on their mobile device. If you forget your insurance card, you will be required to pay for the associated costs out of pocket, which can be very expensive. It is important to keep all receipts to submit to guard.me to assess your eligibility for coverage.

Students should download the guard.me app on your mobile device to make submitting receipts easier or they can submit a claim to the insurance company for consideration. The insurance company will reimburse them based on the eligibility of the service under the insurance policy.

For minor issues such as cold, flu, headaches or minor injuries, students should visit a clinic.

For emergencies such as a serious accident, injury, broken bones, etc., please visit the nearest emergency room.

While you do not need to make an appointment at a clinic, it is strongly recommended that you contact the clinic by phone before you go to confirm hours of operation.

To avoid long wait times at a clinic, you can also speak to a doctor within minutes from home with the guard.me Mobile Doctor.

For a list of clinics, please go to https://www.guard.me/cbu and clink on FIND A CANADIAN CLINIC.

The Nancy Dingwall Health and Counselling Centre is located on the CBU campus. It is staffed with a doctor, nurse and physiotherapist and can address minor, non-emergency issues.

To make an inquiry or to book an appointment, please call 902-563-1359 or email healthservices@cbu.ca. Other local clinics in the area include:

 Sydney Family Practice
196 Kings Road, Sydney
902-567-0010

Lawtons Drugs
196 Bentick St, Sydney
902-539-0078

Glace Bay Walk In Clinic
35 Sterling Road, Glace Bay, NS
902-849-4601

Dr. Virick Walk In Clinic
336 Kings Road, Sydney, NS
902-539 6049

Please be reminded that students also have access to telemedicine with the guard.me Mobile Doctor.

The closest emergency room with 24/7 access is located at:

Cape Breton Regional Hospital
1482 George Street, Sydney, Nova Scotia.

Other emergency rooms located in the surrounding areas include Glace Bay, North Sydney and New Waterford, however, hours of operation are subject to change.

If you are not able to drive and do not need an ambulance, you can call a taxi and ask for a receipt. You can submit the receipt for assessment of coverage eligibility. Students should download the guard.me app on your mobile device to make submitting receipts easier.

If it’s an emergency and you need an ambulance, call 911 and one will be sent to your location immediately.

Ambulance charges are separate from hospital charges, therefore a bill will be sent to you for payment.

Eligible ambulance charges can be submitted to guard.me for reimbursement.

No, you do not need extra insurance to travel outside of the country. Your guard.me policy includes emergency travel coverage up to 30 days worldwide.

The excursion program provides short-term travel up to 30 days worldwide, and 15 days to the USA.

Please note, neither of these programs cover you while you are in your home country.