News and announcements

CPSO begins regulating physician assistants

As of April 1, physician assistants are required to register with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario to continue practising under the physician assistant title in this province. 

While the new requirement brings PAs under formal regulation, their working relationship with physicians remains the same. They can still only perform controlled acts through delegation and with appropriate supervision by a physician, as set out in the CPSO’s Delegation of Controlled Acts policy.  

A physician assistant’s scope of practice will reflect their supervising physician’s scope and is based on the PA’s knowledge, skill and judgment. 

Visit the CPSO’s website to learn more.

Updates on interprovincial billing rates, preventive care and more

The Ministry of Health provided updates on a number of key issues this week, including the following:

• The new interprovincial billing rates for the 2025-26 fiscal year for outpatient and inpatient services, well newborns, high-cost transplants and special implants and devices are effective as of April 1, 2025
• The MOH has updated the cumulative preventive care bonus cervical cancer screening. This involves changes to the preventive care pap smear category
• Physicians are requested to claim for the preventive care service levels they have achieved for their enrolled patients during the period April 1, 2024, to March 31, 2025
• Applications for the Northern Physician Retention Initiative are now available on Ontario.ca. The deadline to apply is April 30, 2025

Have your say on CPSO policy updates

The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario is updating and seeking consultation on two policies, and we invite your feedback. 

1. Delegation of Controlled Acts policy: This policy sets out expectations for physicians about when and how they can delegate those controlled acts 
2. Boundary Violations policy: This policy sets out expectations for physicians regarding sexual and non-sexual boundaries, intimate examinations, sexual relationships with former patients and people close to patients, and mandatory reporting duties

Lend your voice on physician health and well-being

Our Physician Health Program encourages you to participate in the Canadian Medical Association’s 2025 National Physician Health Survey.

This confidential survey measures key wellness indicators such as burnout, anxiety, depression and the impacts of administrative burden, safety and health sector leadership on physicians.

The data collected will help identify challenges, shape solutions, inform advocacy efforts, and advance health and wellness programs like the PHP to support medical learners and physicians like you across their careers. 

All Canadian medical students, residents and practising physicians can participate until April 15. Send your questions and feedback to yourvoice@cma.ca. 
Simplify OHIP billing with our collection of billing guides

We’re committed to providing the knowledge and tools to help you quickly and accurately bill OHIP and get compensated for your work.

A new guide on addiction medicine services fee codes was published last week, adding to our collection of 18 billing guides covering a range of topics from after-hours premiums to palliative care.

Have suggestions for new guides or feedback on the ones we’ve published? We’d love to hear from you!

Your OPIP Statement of Annual Premium is now available 

Your OMA Priority Insurance Program Statement of Annual Premium is now available on Manulife SecureServe. If you need assistance or have questions, contact Manulife’s dedicated line for OMA members at 1-888-596-8881 (8 a.m. – 8 p.m. EST Monday to Friday). Please have your OMA number on hand.

Supporting Indigenous physicians

The Physician Health Program has partnered with the Indigenous Physicians Association of Canada to create a collaborative video highlighting their shared commitment to supporting Indigenous physicians, medical students and residents. The PHP is dedicated to making its services more culturally safe and accessible for Indigenous physicians. We encourage you to explore the Canadian Medical Association’s Indigenous wellness and healing resources. 

Updated fee code master now available

The Ministry of Health has posted a new fee code master that continues to reflect an across the board increase of just over 13 per cent from Year 1 of the 2024-28 PSA and Year 3 of the 2021-24 PSA. This temporary increase applies to services provided between Jan. 1 and March 31, 2025. 

The only changes in this updated version are two new laboratory medicine services tracking codes: L699 and L734. 

You can download the new master now to use with your billing software. If your vendor hasn’t updated your software or you have technical questions about your billing package, please contact your vendor.  

New guide for addiction medicine billing codes

We have posted a new guide to fee codes for addiction medicine services, including guidance on submitting OHIP claims for insured services. We developed the brief in collaboration with the Section on Addiction Medicine. If you have any feedback, please share your thoughts. 

Get involved: Spring 2025 committee recruitment now open

Join us in making a meaningful impact in your area of expertise by becoming a member of one of our committees. We are currently seeking dedicated individuals for the following positions: 

• Relativity Advisory Committee (one position): Provide advice and input to the OMA Board and Negotiations Task Force in developing an evidence-based relativity methodology
• Nomination and Appointment Committee (one position): Shape election and recruitment policy, promote opportunities and support the recruitment, appointment, or election of candidates for key OMA positions

For more information and to apply, please visit our committees web page. The application deadline is May 5. 

New medical equipment contracts launching for home care

Ontario Health atHome will launch new contracts for medical equipment on March 18. You can find a related FAQ document on its website in English and French. OHatHome understands that patients may experience change from the new contracts and are working to support impacted patients.  

If you have any questions or concerns, please speak to the patient’s OHatHome care co-ordinator. You can also email MESModernization@ontariohealthathome.ca for more information about medical equipment or other contract stream implementations. 

Measure and track your well-being

The Physician Health Program invites you to access the Canadian Medical Protective Association’s new Physician Well-Being Index tool. Validated by the Mayo Clinic, this user-friendly tool is designed to help you measure your well-being, track it over time and gain access to wellness resources. 

Log on to the CMPA’s website to get started. The tool itself lives on a separate site to ensure your answers are anonymous.

Protect your practice from cyberthreats

Take OntarioMD’s accredited online privacy and security training and learn how to meet your compliance obligations and safeguard your patient data.

The comprehensive training helps you and your staff understand your obligations under the Personal Health Information Protection Act. It also outlines best practices to prevent privacy breaches from phishing emails and other cyberthreats.

It’s free to sign up and you can earn certificates and CME credits. More than 8,500 clinicians and their staff have completed the training, which has a 90 per cent satisfaction rating.