(Quebec) At the end of patience in its negotiations with family physicians, Quebec will prescribe its own remedy to make their services more accessible. The Minister of Health and Social Services, Christian Dubé, will table a bill on Thursday “aimed at increasing the supply of primary care services by general practitioners and improving the management of this supply”.
“It will be a hand extended to the doctors, you will see”, was satisfied to say Mr. Dubé on his arrival at the weekly meeting of the council of ministers, Wednesday.
In his opening speech for the new parliamentary session on October 19, Prime Minister François Legault warned that his government could come to this. “I have always thought that it was better to come to an understanding with the doctors, but, if necessary, we will not hesitate to impose a conclusion, because Quebecers expect to be taken care of then to to have front-line services within a reasonable time, ”he said. He added that he “begins to get impatient”, while the negotiations have lasted for three years.
At the end of October, Mr. Legault maintained that he was ready to table a bill to allow Christian Dubé to communicate to the CEOs of the CISSS and the CIUSSS (the integrated health and social services centers). identity of doctors who do not follow at least 1000 patients. The Prime Minister had previously revealed Tuesday that he had obtained a list identifying these doctors from data from the Régie de l’assurance maladie du Québec (RAMQ). The Federation of General Practitioners had threatened to sue the government. Minister Dubé subsequently qualified the Prime Minister’s exit.
This is the second law that has targeted family physicians in recent years. Under the Couillard government, Minister Gaétan Barrette adopted Bill 20 which provided for penalties for family physicians who fail to meet certain targets in terms of access to services.
“With a CAQ government, all Quebecers will have a family doctor and will be able to consult him or a specialized nurse practitioner, within a maximum of 36 hours, within 4 years,” promised François Legault in 2018. Access to services is still as difficult as ever: 80% of Quebecers have a family doctor. The waiting list has swelled and now includes 800,000 names.
The government has also lowered the bar in the strategic plan of the Ministry of Health and Social Services, while the aim is to provide access to a family doctor to 85% of Quebecers by 2023. It wants to review the method of remuneration of general practitioners to correct the situation and ensure that they take charge of more patients. In the strategic plan, the Caquist promise of a maximum of 36 hours for a medical consultation was withdrawn.