Hope Air and Scotiabank announce renewed partnership supporting Canadians with critical access to healthcare
(TORONTO, APRIL 18, 2023) Hope Air, Canada’s national charity providing full-service travel and accommodation to Canadians who must travel for vital medical care, is thrilled to announce a three-year partnership with Scotiabank to serve Canadians in financial need who must travel from rural communities to access critical medical care.
As part of Scotiabank’s ScotiaRISE initiative, the three-year, $300,000 commitment to Hope Air will support Canadians across the country with flights, accommodations, meals and ground transportation related to medical travel. In 2022, Hope Air provided over 10,000 travel arrangements, a near 50% increase from 2021, with an anticipated increase of need in years to come.
A diagnosis that requires long-distance travel poses financial challenges, stress and feelings of uncertainty for Hope Air patients. Many Hope Air patients are managing conditions that require frequent travel, only compounding the issue. Scotiabank’s commitment will support patients needing to travel from small rural communities to city centres to access specialized healthcare, allowing them to remain in their home communities, missing fewer days from work and focusing on their health.
“Scotiabank’s commitment to Hope Air demonstrates a crucial support for the communities we serve. As one of our most significant corporate supporters, this demonstration of solidarity with Hope Air and the patients we serve is a testament to their commitment to invest in nurturing resilient individuals and communities. They are playing a critical role in supporting Hope Air as the need to travel to lifesaving care continues to grow across the country,” says Mark Rubinstein, Chief Executive Officer, Hope Air.
“Affording equal access to healthcare is an acute need for those who must travel for serious health issues to get to medical appointments and health care services,” says Maria Saros, Scotiabank’s Vice President & Global Head, Social Impact. “Through ScotiaRISE, we are proud to support Hope Air to help reduce the stress for those dealing with medical issues and enable Canadians to access to the healthcare they need, regardless of where they live.”
About Hope Air
Hope Air is Canada’s national charity providing free travel support through flights, accommodations, meals and ground transportation for Canadians in financial need who must access medical care far from home. Since its inception in 1986, Hope Air has provided more than 170,000 travel arrangements for patients regardless of age or medical need. For people living on a low income in small and rural communities, distance and cost are very real barriers to them accessing vital medical care. Hope Air is a unique and essential part of our Canadian healthcare system. Without the access Hope Air provides, our national system of universal healthcare coverage would fall short of its promise and 33 per cent of patients would cancel or postpone their appointments. For more information, visit hopeair.ca
About Scotiabank
Scotiabank is a leading bank in the Americas. Guided by our purpose: “for every future”, we help our customers, their families and their communities achieve success through a broad range of advice, products and services, including personal and commercial banking, wealth management and private banking, corporate and investment banking, and capital markets. With a team of over 90,000 employees and assets of over $1.3 trillion (as at January 31, 2023), Scotiabank trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: BNS) and New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: BNS). For more information, please visit http://www.scotiabank.com and follow us on Twitter @Scotiabank.
As part of Scotiabank’s ScotiaRISE initiative, the three-year, $300,000 commitment to Hope Air will support Canadians across the country with flights, accommodations, meals and ground transportation related to medical travel. In 2022, Hope Air provided over 10,000 travel arrangements, a near 50% increase from 2021, with an anticipated increase of need in years to come.
A diagnosis that requires long-distance travel poses financial challenges, stress and feelings of uncertainty for Hope Air patients. Many Hope Air patients are managing conditions that require frequent travel, only compounding the issue. Scotiabank’s commitment will support patients needing to travel from small rural communities to city centres to access specialized healthcare, allowing them to remain in their home communities, missing fewer days from work and focusing on their health.
“Scotiabank’s commitment to Hope Air demonstrates a crucial support for the communities we serve. As one of our most significant corporate supporters, this demonstration of solidarity with Hope Air and the patients we serve is a testament to their commitment to invest in nurturing resilient individuals and communities. They are playing a critical role in supporting Hope Air as the need to travel to lifesaving care continues to grow across the country,” says Mark Rubinstein, Chief Executive Officer, Hope Air.
“Affording equal access to healthcare is an acute need for those who must travel for serious health issues to get to medical appointments and health care services,” says Maria Saros, Scotiabank’s Vice President & Global Head, Social Impact. “Through ScotiaRISE, we are proud to support Hope Air to help reduce the stress for those dealing with medical issues and enable Canadians to access to the healthcare they need, regardless of where they live.”
About Hope Air
Hope Air is Canada’s national charity providing free travel support through flights, accommodations, meals and ground transportation for Canadians in financial need who must access medical care far from home. Since its inception in 1986, Hope Air has provided more than 170,000 travel arrangements for patients regardless of age or medical need. For people living on a low income in small and rural communities, distance and cost are very real barriers to them accessing vital medical care. Hope Air is a unique and essential part of our Canadian healthcare system. Without the access Hope Air provides, our national system of universal healthcare coverage would fall short of its promise and 33 per cent of patients would cancel or postpone their appointments. For more information, visit hopeair.ca
About Scotiabank
Scotiabank is a leading bank in the Americas. Guided by our purpose: “for every future”, we help our customers, their families and their communities achieve success through a broad range of advice, products and services, including personal and commercial banking, wealth management and private banking, corporate and investment banking, and capital markets. With a team of over 90,000 employees and assets of over $1.3 trillion (as at January 31, 2023), Scotiabank trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: BNS) and New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: BNS). For more information, please visit http://www.scotiabank.com and follow us on Twitter @Scotiabank.