Some Ontario doctors can treat family members as regulatory college relaxes rules amid shortage
Doctors were previously only allowed to treat relatives and other people close to them in emergencies or for minor conditions if no other qualified health-care professional was readily available.
Now, doctors can provide other medical care — including ordering tests and treating illnesses and injuries — if there isn't another option, such as virtual care, or an alternate health-care provider within a reasonable distance.
The college says on its website the updated policy responds to 'current access to care challenges in Ontario,' and recognizes that patients in smaller communities, including Indigenous communities, may only have access to a doctor who is related to them or close to them.
However, it also says that physicians can't provide treatment to themselves or friends and family on an ongoing basis.
Doctors also can't do intimate examinations or prescribe narcotics to people close to them, except in an emergency.
The policy appears to have been updated on the college's website in May and the changes were published in the June issue of its digital publication.
In an emailed response, a spokesperson for Ontario Minister of Health Sylvia Jones said the CPSO is 'an independent regulatory body, which in Ontario is independently responsible for setting the rules and regulations that physicians need to follow.'
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She also said the provincial government is 'investing $2.1 billion to connect every single person in the province to primary care — and that will continue to be our focus.'
The CPSO did not immediately respond to request for comment.
-With files from Allison Jones
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 11, 2025.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
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