New Minas woman loses drug coverage to go back to school
Dawn Crocker says she wants to get off income assistance by becoming a social worker
A woman from New Minas, on income assistance, says drugs prescribed to her for Crohn's disease will not be covered this year because she enrolled as a student at the Nova Scotia Community College.
Dawn Crocker is an active community volunteer and is now studying to become a social worker at the Kingstech campus.
"When you have a chronic Crohn's that, without medications you will die, it's like somebody saying 'it's ok, you're not important,'" she said.
Crocker opted out of NSCC's health plan. She did that a year ago when she attended the school for the Adult Learning Program without any change to her drug coverage.
On Wednesday, her case worker told her she is not eligible this year.
"I figured I was still covered, you don't just cut somebody off," she said.
Among other medications, Crocker takes Pentasa and Mercaptopurine to manage her Crohn's disease. She says a month's worth of all her pills costs more than $700.
"I can't afford that a month to take care of myself. I'm paying for school," she said.
Crocker says she wants to get off income assistance for good. She is trying to opt back into NSCC's health plan for this semester.
"I want to rise in society and start participating and I've been trying for years and this is what I get and I don't want this anymore."
Nova Scotia's Department of Community Services says clients on income assistance with coverage issues should speak to their case worker.