Alberta cuts access to health care for some foreign workers, raising concerns in the Bow Valley – CBC

Temporary foreign workers say they were not given information about the health coverage change

Feb 06, 2026

Javiera Sepulveda moved to Canada on a working holiday visa and would have been eligible for provincial health coverage under Alberta’s previous rules. But a quiet policy change left her without access to care.

She moved from Chile to Banff in October, where she now works as a housekeeper at a local hotel.

Based on information on Alberta Health’s website, Sepulveda was eligible for provincial coverage in early January, after working in the province for three months. She went to the Banff registry at that time to apply.

Days later, registry staff called her to say she was no longer eligible.

“I was kind of speechless because on the website they have all the requirements and I was meeting all of those,” she said.

Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/alberta-health-coverage-iec-workers-9.7076256