HOW A PHSP WORKS

The Covered Employee (or member of their household) obtains a medical service which they pay directly to a health service provider, such as a dentist, doctor or optometrist. It can be by cash, cheque or credit card. Let's use $100 for an example. A receipt is obtained from the health service provider. At this point the employee is out-of pocket $100.

The Covered Employee submits a health benefit claim with the original receipt to the PHSP planholder (the business).

The PHSP planholder forwards the original receipts by postal mail along with a business cheque totaling $105.25 (the medical expense $100 + the Brock Health fee $5 + GST 25 cents on the fee only). Now the planholder is also out-of pocket $105.25.

Brock Health adjudicates the claim, earns their fee and sends a tax free reimbursement cheque ($100) to the Covered Employee. The employee is fully reimbursed and is no longer out-of-pocket anything. From the Covered Employee's viewpoint, it is identical to commercial health benefit insurance except quicker.

The PHSP planholder remains out-of-pocket. In return, the PHSP planholder (the business) receives a tax receipt of $105.25 from Brock Health at the end of their fiscal year.

The net effect of these transactions is the PHSP business owner has now borne the cost of providing health care benefits to its Covered Employees.

• For small business owners with no employees, this means your family   health benefits are now tax free.
• For businesses with employees, the 5% fixed fee combined with caps   established by the PHSP planholder makes this much more economical   than a premium-based health benefit insurance plan.