A record number of physicians appear to be opting out of the public health system in Quebec.
The Montreal Gazette is reporting that last year a total of 780 general practitioners and specialists were labeled as “non-participants” in the public system, a 22 per cent increase from the year before and the single largest increase on record.
That means that these doctors no longer bill the Régie de l’assurance maladie du Québec (RAMQ) for their services and are working as private medical specialists charging patients for various procedures.
Patient-rights advocates are concerned because this translates to fewer and fewer doctors in the public system and a much harder time for Quebecers accessing public healthcare.
According to the Gazette, the number of non-participant physicians represents about four per cent of all doctors in Quebec, a number that continues to grow as more private clinics are recruiting and even the CAQ government is opening more private health services.
Frustration with a lack of resources and red tape are cited as the main reasons many Quebec doctors are opting to work in the private sector, which patient-rights advocates worry is slowly creating a two-tiered system.