Should provinces crack down on illegal healthcare fees?
- Canada Healthwatch
- May 5
- 1 min read
Opposition proposes suspensions and fines for providers, clinics charging unlawful fees.
Canada Healthwatch: The Weekly Dose — May 5, 2025
Why it’s important: Charging patients for publicly covered care is already illegal under the Canada Health Act, but enforcement is spotty. Bill 7 would change that, formally defining extra billing as professional misconduct and giving regulators the power to suspend licenses and compel repayment.
“We put the burden of identifying and reporting unfair, illegal fees on patients,” said Dr. Edward Xie, a director of Canadian Doctors for Medicare. Since investigations usually rely on formal complaints, many violations go unchecked. One longstanding example: patients being steered into paying “nutrition counselling fees” for unnecessary dietician consults before a routine colonoscopy.
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