The Canadian HBOT Registry documents how Canadians are delayed, denied, priced out, or otherwise burdened when seeking hyperbaric oxygen therapy. This includes people pursuing HBOT for recognized indications, emerging applications, or through private, out-of-province, and cross-border pathways when ordinary access fails.
CHR welcomes submissions from Canadians who encountered barriers while seeking HBOT, including:
Voices from the Registry
The following are illustrative examples of the experiences we document, pending real submissions. Names and identifying details are always anonymized.
My neurologist agreed HBOT was the right next step after my TBI. My insurance denied it twice. I paid out-of-pocket for 30 sessions — $6,900 I didn't have. No one told me I had options.
After three years of long COVID symptoms, my GP had never even heard of HBOT as a treatment option. It took me eight months to find a clinic and I'm still fighting for reimbursement.
The hospital told me radiation-related tissue damage wasn't a covered indication in our province. The same therapy is covered two provinces over. It makes no sense.
These accounts are illustrative examples. Your real submission will be added to the registry with your consent.
Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) involves breathing 100% pure oxygen in a pressurized chamber. At elevated atmospheric pressure, oxygen dissolves directly into plasma and reaches tissues conventional circulation may miss.
Peer-reviewed evidence supports HBOT for conditions including traumatic brain injury, long COVID, wound healing, radiation damage, carbon monoxide poisoning, and more — yet access across Canada remains uneven, under-funded, and frequently inaccessible due to narrow indication lists, cost barriers, and limited referral pathways.
Explore the evidenceThree pillars of our advocacy: collecting stories, curating evidence, and informing policy.
Have you faced barriers to accessing HBOT in Canada — a formal denial, ineligibility due to your condition, cost, geography, or lack of referral? Your account matters. We collect detailed records to build an evidence base for policy change.
Browse curated studies, clinical guidelines, and precedent cases that document HBOT's effectiveness across a range of neurological, inflammatory, and wound-healing conditions.
We compile submissions into anonymized reports shared with health ministries, patient advocacy coalitions, and legal researchers working on access-to-care reform.
Your experience — whether recent or years ago — is valuable data. Submissions are confidential and take less than 10 minutes to complete.
Share Your Story