A Kingston, Ont. doctor ordered to repay the Ontario government more than $600,000 for improper billing related to the administration of the COVID-19 vaccine will appear in a Toronto court on Tuesday in an attempt to reverse the decision. Dr. Elaine Ma organized large drive-thru vaccination clinics in the Kingston region between January 2021 and January 2022 that saw about 35,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine given to residents. The Ministry of Health argued Ma misused the Ontario Health Insurance Plan’s (OHIP) billing code because she used unpaid Queen’s University medical students as volunteers who could not be considered employees. In addition, the services were not provided in Ma’s office, a violation of what the province deems to be “delegated services” that are regulated under a different fee structure. In November 2024, the Health Services Appeal and Review Board found Ma was not eligible to bill OHIP $600,962 plus interest. Ma had said she does not have the money to repay the Ontario government and is asking the court to reverse the original ruling. “We’re in a family medicine shortage and we need to support our doctors, we need them to feel appreciated,” Ma said after the hearing. “And one on one hand, OHIP’s attorney stands up and says ‘Dr. Ma did great work, thank you very much. We’re no way trying to diminish that,’ and then on the other hand say but this actually wasn’t anything extenuating and nothing was done here that couldn’t have been done by others and couldn’t have been done by government. And therefore, she should not only not be paid, but also should be out of pocket hundreds of thousands of dollars. Those two statements aren’t congruent with each other.” The Ontario Medical Association said Ma’s “prompt and innovative response saved lives. Dr. Ma and all the other physicians who stepped up for their communities should be applauded, not punished.” Ma says the initial decision has broader impacts. “If the stance that OHIP has, which is that the physician can no longer bill for the services that are administered or done or performed by medical students, then essentially it is a situation where physicians are being asked to pay to train medical students. They’re being asked to forfeit their own income,” Ma said. “And saying no you can’t do things in an efficient manner, then that limits our ability to provide care to our patients.”
