Quebec to force optometrists to stay in RAMQ amid ongoing negotiations
Posted November 20, 2024 11:26 am.
The Association des optométristes du Québec (AOQ) wants to challenge a decision in court which requires them to offer services under the RAMQ health insurance.
Currently, the AOQ must serve children, people aged 65 and over and income security recipients under the plan.
Quebec published a ministerial decree that prevents optometrists from leaving the public health care system. Since October, optometrists have been threatening to quit the RAMQ to apply pressure on the CAQ government about their ongoing negotiations.
The order comes into effect on Thursday and is applicable for six months. The Quebec government can also renew it, but it cannot exceed two years.
However, if necessary, the Ministry of Health may extend it, each time for a maximum of two years.
The agreement between the AOQ and the Health Ministry expired in 2020.
In October, the AOQ announced that 85 per cent of its members had decided to withdraw from the Régie de l’assurance maladie du Québec (RAMQ), citing the fact that their operating costs had increased three times faster than the fee-for-service rates granted by the government.
Health Minister Christian Dubé said that he wanted to avoid patients not being able to afford optometry services. The AOQ has 1,500 members
