Health Care Connect

 

Health Care Connect is a Ministry of Health program that helps individuals

without a family doctor or nurse practitioner find one in their community.

 

Through the program, people can register online or by phone

and are then assigned to a Care Connector — a nurse who works

to match them with a primary care provider in KW4 based on

availability and individual needs.

 

Having access to ongoing primary care makes a significant

difference in health outcomes. It helps people stay on top of preventive care like screenings and vaccinations, manage chronic conditions, and reduce unnecessary emergency department visits.

 

Health Care Connect supports our Ontario Health Team’s goals and provincial priorities around primary care attachment and equity. Priority populations include newcomers, seniors, individuals with chronic conditions, lower-income residents, and people experiencing homelessness or mental health and addiction challenges.

 

Get Connected:

 

Phone: 8-1-1
Email: HealthCareConnect@ontariohealthathome.ca

 

 

 

 

Posters now available in multiple languages.

Arabic

German

Mandarin

Romanian

Tigrinya

Dutch

Hindi

Polish

Serbian

French

Korean

Punjabi

Spanish

 

 

If you are a Primary Care Provider

 

FAQ Section

 

For Patients

  • How can I specify my preferences for a primary care provider when registering for Health Care Connect?

    • Patients need to call HCC to indicate their preference for a primary care provider  

    • This option is NOT available during online registration at this time. 

    • If there is a preferred language, you can ask for it when calling 8-1-1.

 

  • What are the options for patients to register with Health Care Connect (e.g., phone call, online form)? 

    • There are two ways you can give this information and sign up: 

      • Register online for Health Care Connect online at any time 

      • Call 811 24 hours a day, 7 days a week 

 

  • Is email a viable option for patient registration and communication?

    • No. You can’t register for Health Care Connect using email. You can register online or by phone. (Include registration information)

    • Once registered, you can provide consent to communicate via email. 

 

  • How can I register my newborn with Health Care Connect?  

    • Parents should be given a 10-digit temporary code for their newborn. Use this code to register your baby for HCC. No version code is required.  

 

  • Do I have to de-roster from my current primary care provider before I can register with HCC? 

    • No, you no longer have to de-roster from your current primary care provider. However, it is the your responsibility to notify your current primary care provider if you are leaving that practice for another provider.

 

  • Do I have to have a valid health card? 

    • To use Health Care Connect, you must have a valid Ontario Health Card and an up-to-date mailing address associated with your health card. 

For Healthcare Providers

  • What is Health Care Connect? 
    • HCC is a centralized provincial registry to help people find a family physician, nurse practitioner, or primary care team.

 

  • What information is captured in Health Care Connect? 
    • ​Information captured through the HCC registration process includes a person’s age and their complex-vulnerable status (Based on self-reported capture of general health status, chronic conditions, activity-limiting disability, mental health issues, and/or obesity).  

 

  • How am I compensated for taking patients off the Health Care Connect list? 
    • There are funding incentives available to certain physicians to attach more patients.  Additional payments may vary.
      • Complex Vulnerable New Patient Fee
      • Mother Newborn New Patient Fee - Billed when enrolling an unattached mother and newborn within two weeks of birth or an unattached woman after 30 weeks of pregnancy 
      • Multiple/Newborn Fee - In case of multiple births, a physician may bill this code per newborn in addition to the Mother Newborn Patient Fee code. 
      • HCC Upgrade Patient Status - If a physician accepts a HCC-referred non-complex/vulnerable patient they asses to be complex/vulnerable  

 

  • When does compensation begin? 
    • Implementation details for the new codes are being developed by the parties, as the newly agreed to codes are not yet ready for billing, Physicians will be paid retroactively back to July 1, 2025. 

 

  • Can I just send my list of people looking for a primary care provider to Health Care Connect to have them registered.  Is the Health Care Connect Coordinator considered part of the circle of care with primary care providers as the health information custodian? 
    • No, the Health Care Connect Coordinator is not considered to be part of the circle of care.  Primary care providers would need to obtain the person’s consent by emailing or calling them before sharing their information with HCC.    

 

  • Are Health Care Connect flyers available for me to post in my office?  
    • Yes.  

 

  • If I give you my wait list, are you able to tell patients how long they may be waiting for a primary care provider?
    • Yes. HCC can provide approximate wait times.   

 

 

  • Do patients have to de-roster from their current primary care provider before they can register for HCC?  
    • No, patients no longer have to de-roster from their current primary care provider. It is the patient’s responsibility to notify their current primary care provider if they are leaving that practice for another practice.