Paying Doctor Fees

[ForumUser]

Can my doctor decide not to see me anymore because I didn’t pay the form fee? I didn’t know the fee would be so steep, and now they’re saying fi I don’t pay, they will ban me from the clinic.

[SettlementOrgMod]

Hello,

Thank you for sharing your situation with us.

We can appreciate that you would be concerned about this.

You may find helpful information in the College of Physicians and Surgeons Ontario’s Policy on Uninsured Services, Billing, and Block Fees Here are a few relevant excerpts:

Physicians must also consider the patient’s ability to pay when charging for uninsured services, individually or by block fee, charging for appointments that are missed or cancelled without the required notice, and collecting outstanding balances. In particular, physicians must consider:

• the financial burden that these fees might place on the patient and whether it would be appropriate to reduce, waive, or allow for flexibility on compassionate grounds; and- granting exceptions for appointments that are missed or cancelled without the required notice when it is reasonable to do so (e.g., first or isolated incident, intervening circumstances, etc.).

[…]

Physicians may take action to collect any outstanding fees owed to them, but must do so in a professional manner and in accordance with privacy legislation.
Physicians who are considering ending the physician-patient relationship due to an outstanding balance must comply with the expectations set out in the Ending the Physician-Patient Relationship

If you would like to submit a complaint regarding a doctor, you may want to contact the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario directly. You can find some information about this process in the CPSO guide: Learn About Our Complaints Process.

We hope this information is helpful.

Sincerely,

Your Settlement.Org Team