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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Renewal forms for NWT health care cards will be mailed in April and May as part of a government strategy to weed out former residents who are ringing up charges on the territory's tab.

"It's a perennial problem, but not a large one," said Dana Heide, acting deputy minister of Health and Social Services.

A year ago, Nahendeh MLA Kevin Menicoche told the legislature the number of health care cards exceeded the NWT population by more than 4,000, but that number was "a little over-stated," said Heide, who put the actual number of extra cards a year ago at around 1,700.

"Right now, we have about 253 health care cards now active outside the NWT, so that's down considerably," Heide said.

"They are often young people who go off to university with the card; they don't use it or renew it, or tell us that they have left the territories. The other category is people who move away and don't register for health care in the new province of residence until they need to see a doctor."

Students who normally reside in the NWT continue to be covered by the territorial health program, he said, but people who have moved away are required to apply for health care in their province of residence.

The department monitors charges from outside the territories, Heide said.

"Any time we get a charge from a drugstore or a hospital we write the card holder and ask why.

"About 0.5 per cent are suspicious," Heide said and explained: "They are out of the territories, using their card and can't be tracked down. We do our best to warn them that their coverage will be cancelled."

Heide estimated the amount paid out annually for non-resident health claimants at "much less than $10,000."