BC Ferries drops reservation fees for passengers seeking health care

A BC Ferries vessel is seen arriving at Horseshoe Bay near West Vancouver on March 16, 2020. (Jonathan Hayward / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

BC Ferries is waiving booking fees for passengers who are travelling for medical appointments or procedures that are not offered in their own communities.

The ferry service says the $18 reservation fee will no longer be charged to those who are part of the provincial government's Travel Assistance Program (TAP), which covers ferry fares for British Columbians who must travel within the province for medical services not available in their home communities.

"We understand that travelling while unwell, or to treatments and surgeries, can be stressful," BC Ferries vice-president of marketing Janet Carson said in a statement Tuesday announcing the booking fee waiver.

"Removing the booking fee is our way of helping with travel certainty while removing the financial burden when travelling to and from doctors’ offices, clinics or hospital."

Travellers must obtain a travel assistance program form from a nurse or doctor, or through Health Insurance BC, to qualify for the free reservations.

More than 300,000 customers sailed on the travel assistance program last year, according to the province.

The cost of waiving booking fees for medical travel is projected at between $250,000 to $350,000 in lost revenue annually, according to BC Ferries.

"The Travel Assistance Program is so important in helping people living in rural or remote communities access critical health-care services," said Jennifer Rice, B.C.’s parliamentary secretary for rural health.

"Making reservations for people travelling with TAP free is another great step in removing barriers to accessing health care and I am grateful to BC Ferries for this action."