DC advocates for fair compensation for home care providers in Ontario

DC along with the Ontario Society of Occupational Therapists, the Ontario Physiotherapy Association, the Ontario Association of Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists, and the Ontario Association of Social Workers, have reached out to the Ministry of Health to express concerns about the implementation of virtual visits and compensation in the home care sector.
 
Many members have moved to a virtual model of care and are supportive of this move both for the safety of their clients and community.  However, the fees for virtual care and the significant drop in volume of services have resulted in an unsustainable compensation model.  This will impact quality of care for the clients and the employment of the healthcare provider.  We are asking the Ministry to reinstate the regular visit fee for virtual visits, allow for billing more than one virtual visit at a time for longer services and access to personal protective equipment for services that must be delivered in person. You can read the letter here.

April 23 update
The Minstry of Health acknowledged the letter from the health associations and our concerns regarding the virtual pay scale they implemented. They have now made changes to the billing rates for virtual visits, which the LHIN's and service providers will communicate out. The five associations (DC, OT, PT, SLP, and SW) are continuing to work together to ask the Ministry of Health to go back to the regular (pre-COVID-19) billing rates.

If you are facing an issue like this in your province, please connect with your Regional Executive Director.