Health Care is Not for Sale Act (Addressing Unfair Fees Charged to Patients), 2025

SUMMARY FROM THE OFFICIAL REGISTRY

What you need to know

The Bill amends the Regulated Health Professions Act, 1991 in the following ways: 1. Section 3 of the Act is amended to provide that individuals be treated with fairness in addition to sensitivity and respect in their dealings with health professionals. 2. Section 51 of Schedule 2 to the Act is amended to provide that a panel can find a member has committed an act of professional misconduct if the member or another person has charged a patient an unfair fee for a service provided by the member. If the panel makes such a finding, the panel may require the member to reimburse the patient for the amount paid by the patient for the unfair fee as well as direct the Registrar to suspend the member’s certificate of registration for three months. 3. Section 84 of Schedule 2 to the Act is amended to provide that the patient relations program of a College must include measures for preventing and dealing with unfair fees charged to patients. 4. Section 95 of Schedule 2 to the Act is amended to add a new regulation-making authority that authorizes the Council to make a regulation defining “unfair fee”. The regulation is subject to the approval of the Lieutenant Governor in Council with prior approval of the Minister. The Bill amends the Integrated Community Health Services Centres Act, 2023 in the following ways: 1. Section 13 of the Act is amended to specify that the Director may revoke or suspend a licence in instances where the integrated community health services centre is or will be charging unfair fees to patients. 2. Section 14 of the Act is amended to provide that the Director shall not eliminate services from the list and types of services in respect of which an integrated community health services centre is licensed unless the Director is of the opinion that there is reasonable ground for belief that fees in respect of the eliminated services are being charged, or will be charged, in a manner that is unfair to patients.

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