Hospital travel

[mwrc1]

Was Woundering I have a 3 year old that goes to sick kids every couple mounth.Me and the mother does not live together I work and she is on Ontario works she can't drive.So I take time off from work Rent a car and she pays the gas and she gets travel grant and I get 0 nothing. I pay support But she keeps whats left over would you tell her to take the bus If she dosnt use the travel grant were it should go.

[Peety]

To who is paying the gas and to pay for the rental car.

[dancingqueen]

who do you think would be impacted the most? regardless of fault if you did?

[official soonet pu$$ycat]

The travel grant is meant for just that. If she's not using it, why not put it into a special account for the child?

[dancingqueen]

because,

The travel grant is meant for just that.

[dilligaff]

it`s your kid...take him to the hospital

[dancingqueen]

it`s your kid...take him to the hospital

he/she is also her's.

[dilligaff]

he/she is also her's.

so then you would say "to bad "to your kid because the mother wasn`t helping out?? at least with him taking the kid he knows he is getting the medical attention he/she needs... i wouldn`t be impressed but....i would still get him/her to the hospital.

[dancingqueen]

so then you would say "to bad "to your kid because the mother wasn`t helping out?? at least with him taking the kid he knows he is getting the medical attention he/she needs... i wouldn`t be impressed but....i would still get him/her to the hospital.

Where do you see me saying that?

[Peety]

it`s your kid...take him to the hospital

He is..

[bluekrissyspikes]

it`s your kid...take him to the hospital

i have to agree here.

any support you are paying is probably getting cut directly off her check anyways so it's like she gets nothing from it. if she is using the extra little bit from the travel grant to pay for things they need around the house and to get by on then i wouldnt' say anything. if she wasn't on ow and wasn't getting a travel grant, was barely scraping by on what she had, would you not still drive your kid to the hospital? it is your kid after all and paying child support(while that is great) doesn't deminish your other responsibilities as a parent.

[Amaranth]

i have to agree here.

any support you are paying is probably getting cut directly off her check anyways so it's like she gets nothing from it. if she is using the extra little bit from the travel grant to pay for things they need around the house and to get by on then i wouldnt' say anything. if she wasn't on ow and wasn't getting a travel grant, was barely scraping by on what she had, would you not still drive your kid to the hospital? it is your kid after all and paying child support(while that is great) doesn't deminish your other responsibilities as a parent.

I agree. And the child support would be taken off her cheque dollar for dollar so she is barely making ends meet I am sure.

I am curious, by the way, as to who pays for the meals and accomodations while you go to Sick Kids? Doesn't she pay anything at all with her travel grant? Because my understanding of the travel grant is it is to cover not only travelling but meals and accomodations. I don't think the travel grant is any huge amount either.

When my daughter had to go to Sick Kids in Toronto I took her. I didn't know about travel grants (I have no idea if I even would have qualified) and I just took her because she is my child. She needed to see specialists and I never once thought about the cost or any "inconvenience" to me (or my other children).

[Peety]

I agree. And the child support would be taken off her cheque dollar for dollar so she is barely making ends meet I am sure.

I am curious, by the way, as to who pays for the meals and accomodations while you go to Sick Kids? Doesn't she pay anything at all with her travel grant? Because my understanding of the travel grant is it is to cover not only travelling but meals and accomodations. I don't think the travel grant is any huge amount either.

When my daughter had to go to Sick Kids in Toronto I took her. I didn't know about travel grants (I have no idea if I even would have qualified) and I just took her because she is my child. She needed to see specialists and I never once thought about the cost or any "inconvenience" to me (or my other children).

I was told they cover what a bus ticket would cost and all motel, meals, taxis.

[b&aMom]

I had to take my daughter to Sick Kids almost 5 years ago, and was unable to drive. After paying airfare for the two of us, it was $1200 (we *thought* her condition was too serious to be on a bus for all those hours). We ended up staying with a friend in another town, and driving in to TO every day. After filling out the app for the travel grant, I was refunded about $800. It was not broken down as to what it was for, ie. meals, hotel, airfare.

The travel grant is available to everyone, it is not dependent on income. At least it wasn't when I filled out the form.

IMHO, the travel grant should be used to help cover the costs of the travel, meals, accomodations, etc. That would include a car rental, regardless of which parent pays that car rental. For one parent to use it to supplement their income is, IMO, wrong, especially if the other parent is paying their full share of support. Just because the mother is on welfare doesn't mean the father should kick in more than has been directed by the courts, by not being reimbursed for the car. Does she know that's a reimbursable expense? I had to send my receipts to get our grant. If she's not submitting the car rental receipt, perhaps she isn't even getting the full amount she could. Could it just be a case of lack of info on her part?

[italiandomino]

i have to agree here.

any support you are paying is probably getting cut directly off her check anyways so it's like she gets nothing from it. if she is using the extra little bit from the travel grant to pay for things they need around the house and to get by on then i wouldnt' say anything. if she wasn't on ow and wasn't getting a travel grant, was barely scraping by on what she had, would you not still drive your kid to the hospital? it is your kid after all and paying child support(while that is great) doesn't deminish your other responsibilities as a parent.

I will disagree with that you just said. First of all, whatever support he is paying and is taken off, live within that, otherwise get off OW and get a job to make up the money. If he is taking time off work, then whatever is left over from the travel grant should go to him. Not the mother buying cigerettes. But i would expect this from the women to say. Child support or no child support, most ppl on OW that recieve extra money never put that money to where it should go. To the kids. And please dont tell me this is not true, very very few ppl on OW think of their kids first.

I will agree with others that it is your child and the child should come first. If the grant is to cover the bus, motel, food, taxi's ect, and all the mother is paying for is gas, then i am pretty sure there is alot more money left over then a few bucks.

[icecapp]

I know when we took my little on to london, about 4.5 yrs ago. we were granted 800 aswell and were quiet shocked with that, as B&A's mom said there was no actual break down.. and to be honest, we went, stayed in the hotel in london, which the comfort inn was great they actually gave us cut rate because it was for medical reasons, When I called he asked me on the phone what the purpose of the trip was, we took my own car, which was good on gas, the whole trip with food and hotel and gas, as the little guy was still strickly formula when he went. Was no more then 350 dollars and thats what the recipts were I submitied, but when I called about it which I did, as to why so much money they say there is a certian amount of money to a max that you are paid and you are paid the amount times the distance you travel to a maximum amount. and The max at that time was 800, they also told me it is by ontario road trips, so if we traveled us, thats where we saved our money and time...

[bluekrissyspikes]

I will disagree with that you just said. First of all, whatever support he is paying and is taken off, live within that, otherwise get off OW and get a job to make up the money. If he is taking time off work, then whatever is left over from the travel grant should go to him. Not the mother buying cigerettes. But i would expect this from the women to say. Child support or no child support, most ppl on OW that recieve extra money never put that money to where it should go. To the kids. And please dont tell me this is not true, very very few ppl on OW think of their kids first.

I will agree with others that it is your child and the child should come first. If the grant is to cover the bus, motel, food, taxi's ect, and all the mother is paying for is gas, then i am pretty sure there is alot more money left over then a few bucks.

how is it you know that MOST of these people don't put their kids first? must have ESP or something.

my point was only that if the money is being integrated into her household budget then yeah, it probably is going to benefit the child regardless of what some dude online that doesn't know them thinks.

but now that i've thought about it a bit more, are you sure she's even getting anything? cause when you get a travel grant you actually have to turn in receipts for where all the money went and have forms filled out each time at the doctor, including a signed note from the 'driver' stating that you drove her there and back and a record of your mileage and gas usage. if you don't have all the proper receipts and paper work then you aren't eligible to get another travel grant. so, unless you have given her the receipts for gas/car rental and she has receipts for everything else i doubt she's even getting anything at all. i had to use travel grants a couple years ago to go get treatments and the money was barely enough to cover bus fare, hotel and transportation between the hospital and the hotel and there was $10 left over for 2 days of food while i was away so even if she is getting it, it's not as much as it once was.

and if you really, really have a problem with with her possibly collecting money you feel you should get then phone social services and make a complaint about her possible misuse of the funding.

REGARDLESS of all that, like i said and others have said, it's your kid. you are responsible for your kid weither they live with you or not so if he/she needs a ride and you are the best person to provide that then do it without pay because you are supposed to be a responsible adult about it and that shouldn't depend on what the other parent does with money they might not even be getting. besides, don't you want to be there for your kid to be supportive? especially at a time like this when they are not feeling well and are most likely scared?

[GRUMPY]

put the extra against the rent of the car.

[yoda]

have your ex contact Hope Air, they assist families with medical travel

[b&aMom]

Yes, Hope Air will assist with flights, but you must have some advance time to arrange it. That works alright with appointments scheduled well in advance. In my case, they wanted us there the next day (couldn't do it that fast), so we ended up with about 4 days notice for the appointment. That's why we paid crazy airfare.

ID, don't paint all women with the same brush. As I posted above, IMO the father should get a share of the grant for the car rental, and possibly time lost from work.