Proton therapy funding in BC | protontherapy.ca

If you live in British Columbia, the Medical Services Plan (MSP) may pay for proton therapy outside Canada. The treatment must be medically necessary and not available in Canada. This page explains how that works. The plan, not this site, decides your case.

What this page covers

Your plan and who applies for you.
The role of BC Cancer in a proton case.
The steps, and how to ask for a review if you are declined.

Your plan at a glance

Plan: Medical Services Plan (MSP), administered by the Medical Services Commission. Day-to-day handling is by Health Insurance BC.
Who applies: a specialist actively involved in your care in BC. You cannot apply for yourself.
For cancer care: the application must include a written recommendation from the Medical Director of BC Cancer. A documented team or conference review goes with it.
Approval before travel: required. Elective care abroad must have prior written approval to be funded.

How out-of-country funding works in British Columbia

BC can give prior written approval for elective, medically necessary care outside Canada that is not available here. This is set out in the Medicare Protection Act and its regulation. It is also in the Hospital Insurance Act and its regulation.

The application must be submitted by an appropriate specialist who is actively involved in your care. This is the specialist with the most knowledge of the proposed service. For cancer care, the specialist must include a written recommendation from the Medical Director of BC Cancer. The record of a team or conference review goes with it.

If approved, MSP pays for physician services up to the negotiated or BC rates. It does not cover travel and accommodation, ambulance fees, or drugs given outside hospital. Services from non-physician professionals are not covered either. Experimental or developmental treatment is excluded.

Step by step

Speak with your specialist about whether proton therapy may suit your case.
Your case is reviewed by the BC Cancer team. The Medical Director provides a written recommendation.
Your specialist submits the pre-approval application to Health Insurance BC before any treatment is booked.
Wait for the written decision.
If approved, arrange treatment at the approved centre with your team.
If declined, use the review stages below within their deadlines.

Important: who decides

The Medical Services Branch and Health Insurance BC decide whether your treatment abroad is funded. Do not book or start elective treatment before you have written approval, or you may have to pay the full cost yourself.

If you are declined

If you are declined, you can request an administrative review by the Medical Services Branch within six months. After that, you can request a formal review by a Medical Services Commission panel within six months of that decision. Approval on review is very rare, however. The effort is better spent on a complete, well-documented first application prepared with your physician.

Proton therapy referral in British Columbia

For a proton case, BC requires the BC Cancer Medical Director’s written recommendation and a documented team review before approval. As part of approval, your physician may be asked for an assessment comparing a proton plan with a standard radiation plan. Treating teams in Canada prepare this comparison. This matches a pan-Canadian consensus. That consensus found provinces require expert case review to confirm that proton therapy is suitable before funding it. Your specialist and the BC Cancer team lead this review.

Frequently asked questions

Does MSP cover proton therapy?

It may. Canada has no operating proton therapy centre today. So a medically necessary case can meet the test that the treatment is not available here. A specialist involved in your care applies on your behalf. For a cancer case, the application carries the Medical Director of BC Cancer’s recommendation, and MSP decides.

How long does an MSP decision take?

MSP does not publish a decision time for out-of-country reviews on its current pages. Your physician can ask Health Insurance BC for current timing when applying.

Sources for this page (5)

BC out-of-country funding, specialist and BC Cancer requirement, exclusions, and three-stage review: BC Ministry of Health, Out of Country Funding Guidelines (PDF). www2.gov.bc.ca (checked 2026-07-06)
MSP medical benefits outside BC and program contact: Government of British Columbia. www2.gov.bc.ca (checked 2026-07-06)
Legal basis: Medicare Protection Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 286. bclaws.gov.bc.ca (checked 2026-07-06)
Provinces require expert review for proton suitability: pan-Canadian consensus, PubMed 36228758. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov (checked 2026-07-06)
Note: the located Out of Country Funding Guidelines are dated 19 January 2011. Confirm the current version with the program at [email protected] or 1-800-663-7100.

Every statement on this page is drawn from the sources listed below. Last updated: 15 July 2026.

This page is for general education only. It is not medical advice and it is not a decision about your care or your funding. Only your treating physician can advise you on treatment. Only your provincial or territorial health plan can decide whether it will fund treatment outside the country. protontherapy.ca is an information resource by Maple Med Global (MMG Medical Tourism Inc.), Toronto, Canada. We are not a hospital, a clinic, or a government body, and we do not provide medical care.

Proton therapy funding in British Columbia