The Minister of Health, Christian Dubé, wants the government platform Rendez-vous santé Québec (RSVQ) to continue to direct patients to private health establishments.
On the other hand, he said on Wednesday that he would like to further clarify the choices offered to patients. “I’m going to see what corrections need to be made on the site, to make sure that people understand that there are appointments that are free and that there are appointments that require payment,” a- he declared in an exchange with the parliamentary press. “I’m not sure that much is clear. »
The duty revealed on Wednesday the case of a patient who ended up in a private clinic after being referred by RSVQ to a list of replacement services due to a lack of availability in his family medicine group.
Mr. Dubé was in favor of this way of proceeding. “I don’t have a problem with that,” he said.
The minister, however, indicated that he does not want RSVQ to directly offer appointments in private health care companies. “I just want to clarify that Rendez-vous santé gives a list where we can have public appointments, therefore free, but which also gives a list as soon as there are private appointments,” he said. said.
In September, Mr. Dubé had already affirmed that the private sector offer on the popular Clic santé private platform was complementary to that of the public sector.
Abnormal, judges the opposition
Liberal MP André Fortin considers it abnormal for the government to open the door to the private sector through its own platform. “If people want private services, they will turn to the Yellow Pages; They will go and see where these services are. But when we turn to the government, it is to have public services, he said. We cannot direct people, without also telling them, to services for which they will have to pay. »
According to Mr. Fortin, Minister Dubé had already committed to closing this type of gap through which patients find themselves having to pay bills of $200 and more. “Christian Dubé himself told us: “It doesn’t make sense, we have to stop it.” Obviously, that hasn’t been done. »
Solidarity MP Guillaume Cliche-Rivard pleaded for the Régie de l’assurance santé du Québec (RAMQ) to reimburse patients thus referred to the private sector. “There are families, it’s quite obvious, who are unable to afford this,” he lamented.
According to him, the private sector’s offer seems more accessible than that of the public sector in certain cases. “The only things that are available on these platforms, at the moment, if you want to make an appointment, it is paid – if you want to make an appointment in the short term, tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. »