Quebec has officially passed a law requiring doctors to work in the public health-care system for five years after obtaining a medical degree in the province.
Bill 83, adopted on Thursday by a vote of 72 to 30, is intended to improve access to health care for Quebecers by preventing doctors from exiting the public system for the private system.
“The universal health-care system, financed by the people of Quebec, must enable everyone to consult a doctor when they need to,” Health Minister Christian Dubé said in a statement.
“The private sector can help to support the public network: we will ensure that this contribution remains complementary, always in the interests of Quebec patients.”
Quebec Health Minister Christian Dubé tabled a bill that would force medical school graduates in the province to spend their first five years working in the public health-care system.
Bill 83 also requires doctors to seek the approval of Santé Québec, the Crown corporation that runs the health network, to practise in the private system.
Santé Québec will either approve or reject a doctor’s request based on the following criteria:
- The number of available doctors in a region.
- The doctor’s departure from the public system cannot lead to negative consequences for patients in that region.
- The inability of the public network to use this doctor in the establishments in that region.
The law, titled An Act to Foster the Practice of Medicine in the Public Health and Social Services Network, includes the threat of fines for doctors who violate it. The fines, which could be applied to physicians who practise in the private system before spending five years in the public system, range from $20,000 to $100,000 per day, with repeat offences incurring fines of $40,000 to $200,000.
According to the Ministry of Health and Social Services, more than 835 of Quebec’s 22,868 doctors currently work exclusively in the private network — an increase of 80 per cent since 2020.
