The OMA’s Uninsured Services Committee is addressing compensation for doctors
In this Q-and-A, Dr. Jesse Wheeler, chair of the OMA’s Uninsured Services Committee, shares how we’re working to ensure you’re paid for the uninsured services you provide. The committee’s mandate is to review and update fees for uninsured services. It is physician-led and its four members report to the CEO and OMA Board of Directors.
In this wide-ranging conversation, we learn which services not covered by OHIP are eligible for billing, about a new tool to quickly find a form’s fee, and how the move toward hourly rates and minimum fees will put more money in your pocket.
Q. Doctors are seeing more requests for services not covered by OHIP. How are we making sure they’re being paid fairly?
We continually review the rates in the OMA Guide to Uninsured Services to make sure doctors are compensated appropriately for our time and expertise.
In recent years, we’ve been leading a movement away from flat fees toward hourly rates and minimum fees, which more fairly reflect the time, expertise and complexity of this work. For example, we now recommend that doctors bill at an hourly rate for filling out the CRA Disability Tax Credit application form, with a minimum fee of $150. An hourly rate with a $50 minimum fee is recommended for Short-Term Disability forms.
Q: What’s the easiest way to find the fee for a particular form and who to bill?
We’ve been working with the OMA Forms Committee to help set and update recommended rates for several common forms. This information can now be found in one place in the Suggested Form Fees 2025 list, which we’ve just released on our web page.
Q. How can doctors calculate their hourly rate?
We want to make it as easy as possible for everyone to figure out their hourly rate, so our website includes an interactive hourly rate calculator. The calculation is based on gross annual income and takes into account overall hours worked.
Q. What about fees for photocopying a patient’s medical records? There is a lot of disappointment with those.
You’re right. This is one of the greatest areas of frustration the committee hears and we share those feelings. The photocopying rate does not reflect the time and work put into the transfer of records to third parties, especially when we’re required to review the records to protect patient privacy.
The fees were set by the Information and Privacy Commissioner in 2010 and upheld in a ruling against a doctor 10 years later. The OMA strongly opposes the fees, but unfortunately doesn’t have the jurisdiction to change them. There are no other avenues for legal challenges, and billing at higher rates would expose a physician to risk.
Q. What’s next? What else is the committee doing to ensure fair compensation?
We’re taking on several new initiatives this year.
We’re reviewing the formula used to determine our annual uninsured fee increases to make sure it captures the unique inflationary pressures our practices face. IT and EMRs add to the cost of doing business, and insurance, telecommunications and accounting and legal expenses are going up. It’s important to accurately account for inflation in those areas.
You’ll also soon learn how much other physicians are being paid for hospital administrative work, so anyone considering those roles will have a sense of what might be appropriate.
We’re offering help reviewing any uninsured fee guides created by OMA sections, MIGs and fora for their members.
We’re also hoping to soon provide a menu of options for collecting payment from patients at point of care.
Watch for updates to our guide. You can order a copy of the OMA Uninsured Services poster, now also available in French, or reach out to us with any suggestions or questions at info@oma.org
You deserve to be paid fairly for the services you provide, including those that aren’t covered by OHIP.
Here are five resources to make this process easier: