Doctors’ lobby, premier both claim a win
Province and doctors’ lobby both claim victory, though terms remain secret
Premier Philippe Couil lard maintains the agreement in principle signed on Friday between the Quebec government and medical specialists will aid patients.
Medical specialists will also benefit by avoiding the penalties provided for in Bill 130, which would regulate the practice of specialists in hospitals.
The premier denied he had yielded to the powerful doctors lobby, who have received substantial and controversial pay increases in recent years.
On the contrary, he said on Saturday, government negotiators obtained significant, never-before seen gains in order to guarantee access to medical specialists.
As well, the government’s financial framework was scrupulously respected, the premier said.
The confidential agreement aims to set working conditions and remuneration for the 10,000 members of the Fédération des médecins spécialistes (FMSQ). Few details have come out about the content of the agreement, which will have to be approved by the members of the federation before it comes into force.
“We have obtained (from the medical specialists) things that we have never had before now,” Couillard said, without going into the details of the agreement.
“There are very important gains for patients in terms of access to services, particularly in (medical) imaging,” Couillard said.
The lack of consistency in services offered, an issue in several regions, will also be reduced by the agreement, according to the premier.
On average, medical specialists earn $420,000 in Quebec, while family doctors receive $245,000. In October, general practitioners received an increase of 14.7 per cent over six years worth a total of $1.6 billion.
On Friday, the president of the FMSQ, Diane Francoeur, claimed victory, saying the federation has won the right to negotiate its members’ working conditions, something it has been fighting for.
Health Minister Gaét an Barrett e had threatened to apply Bill 20, which provides for significant financialpenalties, up to 30 percent of remuneration, if doctors don’t increase the number of patients in their care. Even though the targets established in the bill have not been reached, the penalties in the law are currently suspended.
Couillard suggested punitive measures in Bill 130 would also be suspended. That bill gives hospital directors more power to control how specialists use their time, increasetheir productivity and their presence at the hospital.
“This is not a retreat,” Couillard said. “It’s the same thing as with the general practitioners. There has been a lot of progress.”
Barrette, who was excluded from the negotiations in December, refused a request for an interview.
The Parti Québécois critic on health issues, MNA Diane Lamarre, expressed concern the agreement contained no real guarantee that access to medial specialists will be improved. According to her, the priority should given to cancer-related surgeries and that this should appear in the agreement.
Wehave obtained (from the medical specialists) things that we have never had before now.