Doctors Manitoba is urging patients to think twice before possibly contacting a U.S. clinic advertising diagnostic procedures on 48 hours notice.
Brochures from Grand Forks Clinic sent to homes in Charleswood and River Heights promise Canadian clients “faster appointments” and “accurate timely results.”
The mailer lists the range of prices for Canadians at $800 to $1,900 for an MRI, $800 to $1,700 for a CT scan, $400 to $900 for an ultrasound, $1,200 for an echocardiogram and $5,900 for a whole-body scan. It did not specify whether the fees listed are in U.S. or Canadian dollars.
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Brochure from Grand Forks Clinic sent to homes in Charleswood and River Heights.
The clinic did not respond to requests for comment Thursday.
Its website offers “a wide variety of imaging at competitive cash-pay pricing and scheduling within 48 hours for our Canadian patients.”
It posts anonymous testimonials from satisfied customers.
“I came from Manitoba for a screening ultrasound and received excellent service! No waiting, I got an appointment quickly,” one states. “The tech who did mine was very personable, thorough, and caring. I received my results within an hour. Excellent clinic!”
Another testimonial says it’s from a patient who got a CT scan.
“The entire process from start to finish was seamless and efficient, and I received my results the next day,” it states.
Doctors Manitoba advises patients to check with their doctor if they think they need a test or screening, reminding them that Manitoba Health covers the cost of required tests and screenings.
“Many of the screenings these American companies offer are marketed in a way that some doctors describe as ‘coercive’ or ‘predatory’ by convincing people they need a screening that isn’t medically recommended for their age or personal medical situation,” spokesperson Keir Johnson said.
“Getting a test that isn’t medically recommended comes with risks, too,” he said in an email.
The advocacy group for Manitoba doctors and medical students created a website, GettingHealthy.ca, so Manitobans can get personalized advice based on their age and gender from local physicians about screenings, tests, vaccines and other health matters.
“Where we do hear about Manitobans seeking these user-pay tests, it speaks to the unreasonably long wait times in Manitoba for medically necessary tests, and the shortage of doctors and other providers,” he said. “We continue to advocate for Manitobans for better access to the care they need.”
The wait time for an MRI scan in June in Winnipeg ranged from 19 weeks at Pan Am Clinic to 49 weeks at the Health Sciences Centre. In the Interlake-Eastern health region, the wait was 15 weeks, in Prairie Mountain it was eight weeks, and in Southern Health it was 14 weeks. Northern Manitoba does not have an MRI.
The wait for CT scans ranged from two weeks in the Northern Health region (at the Thompson General Hospital) to 25 weeks at Seven Oaks General Hospital in Winnipeg.
Ultrasound wait times ranged from less than a week at Thompson General Hospital, Roblin District Health Centre and the Swan Valley Health Centre to 14 weeks at Winnipeg’s Concordia Hospital.
“Manitobans can rest assured that our government is focused on improving care right here at home because we believe you shouldn’t have to pay to get health care,” Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara said in a prepared statement.
“When the previous government spent years putting more effort into sending people away for health care than fixing care in our own province and violated the Canada Health Act, making Manitobans pay out of pocket for diagnostics, it makes sense that a private, for-profit American clinic would try to take advantage of the situation.”
In March 2023, the federal government cracked down on provinces that in 2020-21 allowed patients to be charged for medically necessary services that should be accessible to patients at no cost and said it would be deducting the charges from those provinces’ health transfers.
Of more than $82 million clawed back across Canada, Manitoba was assessed $353,827 for allowing a private clinic to charge patients for diagnostic tests. Then-health minister Audrey Gordon said last summer her department directed Prota Clinic to cease charging patients for medically insured services.
carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca
Carol Sanders
Legislature reporter
Carol Sanders is a reporter at the Free Press legislature bureau. The former general assignment reporter and copy editor joined the paper in 1997. Read more about Carol.
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