Don't pay to have your Vit E tested!!!
Beginning December 1, 2010, the Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP) will only cover the cost of vitamin D testing for patients with the following medical conditions:
- Osteoporosis and Osteopenia
- Rickets
- Malabsorption Syndromes
- Renal Disease
- Patients on medications that affect vitamin D metabolism
For people without these conditions, the cost of a vitamin D test will no longer be covered by OHIP.
Please note that effective December 1, 2010, if you visit a LifeLabs patient specimen collection centre for a 25-hydroxy vitamin D test and your health care provider has not indicated on your lab requisition that the test should be insured, you will be required to pay LifeLabs' fee for the test. This can be paid by cash, cheque, debit card or credit card.
People should speak to their health care provider to determine whether they require vitamin D testing, and if they would be eligible for an insured vitamin D test.
Every individual’s health care needs are unique, so it is important to discuss your concerns about vitamin D testing and supplementation with your health care provider.
Your health care provider is in the best position to give advice about healthy eating and how to properly supplement your diet to ensure you receive adequate amounts of vitamin D.
The decision to only cover vitamin D testing for certain medical conditions was made after a review of the best available medical evidence by the Ontario Health Technology Advisory Committee. The evidence showed that vitamin D testing of healthy Ontarians is not appropriate or medically necessary.
Vitamin E isn't normally checked for RNYers because it is a rare deficiency, so I think it is only checked if you're specifically showing signs of deficiency. If you want it tested otherwise, you have to pay, but many health plans will pay for this testing. I believe it is a serum test for Alpha-tocopherol which is the type of E stored in the body.
