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The Ontario Health Coalition is bringing to light the impact of private health care in the province.

The Coalition recently wrapped up a series of town halls in a campaign against the Ford government’s plan to expand the role of private healthcare clinics.

Executive Director Natalie Mehra says they have found that some patients are already paying exuberate costs for service.

Mehra says in some cases, patients were not even aware they were being overbilled.

“Privatization has ballooned under the Ford government, and this is the last stage in an ongoing move to privatize piece by piece by piece our health system,” says Mehra.

Mehra says she has no faith in the government to stop the practices now.

In its plans to expand the role of private clinics, the government has said there would be mechanisms in place to protect patients.

Mehra says those are already in place, but the government chooses not to enforce the rules.

“The ability under the Commitment to the Future Medicare Act, which was passed in 2004, to fine the clinics. It has the power to tell the physicians that they can bill OHIP if they are billing patients privately.”

Mehra says they tried to address the issue with the government, but it won’t meet with them.