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Comment: Fixing the hyphen problem shouldn’t be so hard

Re: “ Taxpayer trapped by the ‘-’ in her name ,” column, Sept. 11. I can relate to the new combined driver’s licence/B.C. medical card problems with mismatched names.
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Re: “Taxpayer trapped by the ‘-’ in her name,” column, Sept. 11.

I can relate to the new combined driver’s licence/B.C. medical card problems with mismatched names.

My driver’s licence shows the hyphen in my first name, my birth certificate shows the hyphen in my name and my “old” B.C. medical card depicts the missing hyphen by leaving a space. So when I renewed my driver’s licence and the difference was spotted, I was instructed to go to Services B.C. with my birth certificate to show the correct spelling and the problem would be fixed.

Not so fast. My medical is First Nation coverage, so they gave me a form to complete, and I would need to seek approval of the Non-Insured Health Benefits Program to change it. My government-issued “status” card shows the correct spelling with the hyphen — still not good enough.

So now I need to fill out more paperwork, send in my birth certificate or a notarized copy of my birth certificate and probably my correctly spelled status card. I showed the agent my status card and asked: Why can’t you just verify it all here? I’ve had this medical card for so many years, I have all the documents required and still I would have to do the work for the B.C. government, which can’t fix a hyphen glitch in its system.

The answer: NIHB is group coverage, so we need their approval to give you the new card. Are they kidding me? I’ve had my own health care since turning 18. I’m not applying for health coverage.

This begs the question of how antiquated the government’s record-keeping systems are, or how resistant they are to changing policy? The man-hours spent with people running around accommodating something this ridiculous leaves little faith in how efficient other systems are when it comes to dealing with services or rules that taxpayers must abide by when it comes to outdated systems.

To date, I have not filled out more paperwork, photocopied my “correct” birth certificate given to me more than 60 years ago, taken the photocopy to a notary to certify as a true copy, filled out the envelope, copied all my documentation to put in the envelope, put a $1.25 stamp on it or driven to the post office to post it.

It’s the principle of it. I agree with the woman facing the problem: Why don’t people do their jobs, and if this has to be run by the premier to fix a “-” so be it. It is a waste of my time and taxpayer dollars. So maybe in five years, when I need to renew my licence, they will have fixed this in a “dash” of time.

Jo-Anne Berezanski lives in North Saanich.