As hospitals in Ottawa and across Ontario deal with an overflow of patients, the Ontario government is cutting some of the fees it pays to doctors who provide online care.
The move is pushing one virtual pediatric clinic to begin charging a monthly subscription fee to those who use its service.
Two-year-old Henry was born with a connective tissue disorder, and has spent most of his life in and out of the hospital.
"He's medically complex and this has been the worst cold, flu and RSV season we have experienced," mother Allana Kayfetz says. "Henry was meant to have a routine catheterization of his heart and it's now been postponed four times because he keeps getting sick."
Kayfetz, along with Henry's father Matthew Kantor, need him to stay healthy and to avoid unnecessary exposure to viruses. The family has turned to an online virtual pediatric clinic - KixCare.
"It's a platform that allows parents and caregivers like us to access, quite frankly physicians," says Kayfetz. "For example, we thought Henry had pink eye recently and we were able to get to that conclusion using a KixCare doctor."
The service provides 24 hours a day, seven days a week connections to healthcare professionals from around Ontario.
Throughout the pandemic, the province allowed doctors to charge the Ontario Health Insurance Plan the same fee for online visits as in person - about $80 per visit.
However, it was only a temporary. On Dec. 1, virtual care coverage will drop by 75 per cent.
"A temporary service that was put in place during COVID is now being a modified," Ontario Health Minister Sylvia Jones says. "The Ontario Medical Association and the Ministry of Health are very proud of the fact that we were able to work collaboratively to work out an agreement to make sure that, absolutely, family physicians have the ability to use virtual care when appropriate, but also to ensure that our family physicians are seeing patients in person."
KixCare plans to charge users a monthly subscription fee of $29 to make up for the cost. This access will be mainly for nurse practitioners.
For Kayfetz, she says that at a time when hospitals are overwhelmed with patients, waiting dozens of hours to see a doctor, this is not the right move.
"Everything about this feels really weird and backwards," she says. "What we really don't want is for the ones who are the most fragile, our kids who are medically fragile, to not have the surgeries moved, to not be able to see their primary care providers, and to not have a shortage of Tylenol, Advil, and access to medicine."
The Department of National Defence says Canada is working with the United States to protect sensitive information from foreign intelligence threats after a high-altitude surveillance balloon was detected.
After a string of violent attacks on public transit in Toronto and other cities, a new survey has found that nearly six in 10 public transit users in Canada say they feel less safe or somewhat less safe while commuting.
Hundreds of customers who scan QR codes for restaurant menus across Canada are being surprised by secret menus instead, revealing the hidden costs behind the food they eat.
A Russian woman says she has been denied consular services by her country's embassy in Canada over claims her Facebook activity poses a security threat.
Nestle Canada says it is winding down its frozen meals and pizza business in Canada over the next six months. The four brands that will no longer be sold in the freezer aisle at Canadian grocery stores are Delissio, Stouffer's, Lean Cuisine and Life Cuisine.
More than two years after downtown Beirut was levelled by an explosion, a Lebanese-Canadian family of a 3-year-old girl killed in the blast is still searching for answers. Watch W5's documentary 'The Explosion' on CTV at 7 p.m.
Paid subscriptions to on-demand care are among the many strategies primary health-care providers in Ontario are adopting in order to meet increased demand for access to doctors in the past year, while also managing staffing shortages.
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland is hosting an in-person meeting today with the provincial and territorial finance ministers in Toronto.
A new survey conducted by Research Co. reveals that more people in Western Canada now support a change in the federal government compared to a similar poll from June.
Here is a list of school closures and cancellations for Friday, February 3, 2023.
The chief executive officer of Health PEI says while Canada has one of the most expensive health-care systems, it also has some of the worst outcomes, longest wait lists and the fewest number of hospital beds.
On the day that Shubenacadie Sam predicted six more weeks of winter, there are extreme cold warnings cautioning that the coldest air of the season is about to arrive in the Maritimes.
Those heading outside this morning are being advised to bundle up as the Greater Toronto Area and nearly all of Ontario experience a bout of bone-chilling cold.
About 71 per cent of Ontarians feel less or somewhat less safe using public transportation than they did a year ago, a new survey suggests.
A paralegal firm whose tagline is “we win or it’s free” bribed a Toronto traffic court clerk to change legal records to make it look like they had won, said the clerk in the first time he has testified publicly about the case.
Hydro-Québec is asking its customers to take a few steps to reduce electricity consumption in Quebec as a period of intense cold weather began Thursday night in most regions. The utility predicts that on Friday and Saturday, electricity demand could exceed the historical peak consumption, which was about 40,500 megawatts (MW) in January 2022.
A beloved man who was a fixture on the streets of Montreal's Notre-Dame-de-Grace neighbourhood died last year from a combination of street drugs in his system, including fentanyl, a coroner has ruled.
Construction of the new overhead ramp from Highway 440 westbound to Highway 15 northbound in Laval will begin next Monday and will take three years. The ramp repair is part of the second phase of the project to make the interchange safer and improve mobility. A redevelopment of the exit leading from Highway 440 westbound to Industriel Boulevard is also planned.
An argument between two young children playing outside together escalated to violence when a parent got involved, a North Bay mom says.
The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. is holding a big reveal Friday morning: the winner of a $48 million Lotto 6/49 Gold Ball draw.
The Department of National Defence says Canada is working with the United States to protect sensitive information from foreign intelligence threats after a high-altitude surveillance balloon was detected.
Extreme Cold and snow squall warnings are impacting roads and schools in the region.
Police and London fire are on scene in the area of Adelaide Street north between Pall Mall Street and Piccadilly Street.
One person has died and four others were sent to hospital after a two-vehicle crash in south London Wednesday night. She has since ben identified by her former cheerleading coach as 19-year-old Chloe Mackenzie.
New documents show what led to a couple handing out cannabis-infused gummies to children in Winnipeg - and what happened in the hours directly after.
A mobile home owner could potentially be out thousands of dollars after learning her home might not be insurable.
The Department of National Defence says Canada is working with the United States to protect sensitive information from foreign intelligence threats after a high-altitude surveillance balloon was detected.
Police say they’ve arrested multiple people and one person was taken to hospital following reports of an armed robbery at Conestoga Mall on Thursday.
Waterloo regional police issued a robbery warning Thursday evening after they said two convenience stores and a restaurant in Kitchener were robbed within a 30 minute span.
After years of decline, demand for Calgary's downtown commercial real estate is showing signs of returning to life.
Artur Pawlowski is charged with breaching a release order and mischief for inciting people at the border crossing, where truckers gathered to block a highway.
Curling Canada says it is opening up its pregnancy exemption eligibility to all teams competing at next year's Canadian women's and men's championships, with the announcement coming a day after the organization came under fire for limiting the exemption to just the top five teams in the rankings.
Aaron Benneweis, 46, has been charged by Saskatoon Police with sexual assault and sexual exploitation of a minor while in a position of trust or authority.
Brian Hodgkinson always knew there was benzene in natural gas — after all, he spent 40 years working with it for SaskPower, then SaskEnergy.
A report written and reviewed by Saskatoon Water is calling on the city to create a warning system, in particular for drivers, when roadways become “dangerously flooded” due to heavy rain.
A former Edmonton Police Service officer believes bringing Alberta Sheriffs into downtown Edmonton is a risky plan that has the potential to backfire if not done properly.
The Operation Friendship Seniors Society (OFSS) announced Wednesday that it would be shutting down services at the McCauley Seniors drop-in facility.
A new public art installation has blossomed in a downtown Edmonton neighbourhood.
CTV News has learned that four of five RCMP officers facing charges in the death of an Indigenous man during an arrest in Prince George are still on active duty.
A man who was gunned down outside of his business in South Vancouver never got the chance to meet his daughter, a court heard as his killer was sentenced.
A nationwide billboard campaign that appears to promote grunge-chic clothing for street youth is causing confusion and igniting debate.
The provincial government is looking for ways to ease the workload for Saskatchewan doctors. It is proposing that pharmacists, nurse practitioners, and paramedics play a greater role in treating patients.
One of Saskatchewan’s oldest hockey rinks has garnered national attention for its unique features and unusual design.
The final details are being chiselled into place at the REAL District in preparation for the second annual Frost Festival taking place Feb. 3 to 12.
