Optometrists issue threat to province over fees

Group says 90% of members will leave RAMQ

Seniors, children and those receiving social assistance could start paying up to $95 for an eye exam if Quebec’s 1,400 optometrists follow through on a threat to withdraw from the province’s health insurance program (RAMQ) next month.

However, Premier Philippe Couillard seemed undaunted by their announcement.

In a communiqué issued Wednesday, the Association des optométristes du Québec (AOQ) said 90 per cent of its members would withdraw from RAMQ on March 10 following failed negotiations over how much they can charge patients covered by the health insurance program.

Currently, patients covered by RAMQ — those under 18, over 65 or receiving social assistance — do not pay for eye exams, the price for which is about $95 for those not covered by public health insurance.

The AOQ contends that for 15 years the Health Department has turned a deaf ear to its demands for increases in fees it can charge for publicly insured procedures.

The organization argues that operating costs for its members have increased by more than 150 per cent during the past 30 years, while increases in fees charged to patients and covered by RAMQ have increased by 56 per cent during the same period.

It says an increase in RAMQ compensation is essential if the membership is to remain in the insurance program, since those covered by the plan represent 50 per cent of patients — a proportion that will grow as the population gets older.

The AOQ says the total compensation it receives from the government represents less than one per cent of the health ministry’s budget, and that “at a time when the government is announcing budget surpluses and making numerous financial commitments — including a program of eye exams for children entering school — the means to remedy the situation are there.”

In Quebec City, Health Minister Gaétan Barrette said he was surprised by the optometrists’ decision on the issue and called for patience.

“We have had two negotiation sessions, two, and they are already pulling out (of talks). I have never seen negotiations reaching an agreement in two sessions.”

Couillard downplayed the threat, adding, “I think we can expect this sort of thing with an election approaching.

“All this is no coincidence; it’s part of the pre-electoral dance. Everyone will present their issue as the one which dominates all others.

“We will talk to them. It’s not because someone threatens that we have to automatically do what they want. There have to be discussions as well.”