Legault government wants to bring Quebec doctors into line, introducing ‘surprise bill’ tomorrow
Posted May 7, 2025 12:13 pm.
Last Updated May 7, 2025 12:45 pm.
The CAQ government will introduce a surprise bill on Thursday aimed at bringing doctors into line.
“It’s going to be a rough ride, but we’re not going to back down,” Premier François Legault declared Wednesday morning.
The bill, “aimed primarily at establishing collective responsibility and accountability for physicians in improving access to medical services,” comes amid negotiations to renew the physicians’ framework agreement.
Delegates from the Fédération des médecins omnipraticiens du Québec (FMOQ) rejected Quebec’s offer last Saturday to modify their compensation model, notably by introducing colour coding for each patient.
The Legault government wants 25 per cent of family doctors’ compensation to be tied to their performance.
“We will never have an effective healthcare system until all Quebecers are cared for by family medicine groups, starting with family doctors,” Legault said during a brief press scrum.
The Premier clarified that, in his opinion, “two-thirds of doctors care for Quebecers, but there are a third who must do more,” he maintained.
“Quebecers have the right to be cared for. We’re introducing a bill tomorrow, and it’s non-negotiable. I’m not going to back down, unlike other governments who have always backed down with the doctors’ union,” he added.
According to him, “the doctors’ union has always refused to (…) take responsibility, so there’s going to be upheaval, but we’re not going to back down.”
Nous nous sommes engagés à ce que 100 % des Québécois soient pris en charge d’ici l’été 2026.
— Christian Dubé (@cdube_sante) January 23, 2025
Pour y arriver, il fallait repenser la première ligne. Nous avons donc mandaté des experts indépendants pour nous faire des recommandations scientifiques. Leurs travaux serviront à… pic.twitter.com/UYljYPyJQG
The office of Health Minister Christian Dubé has already invited journalists to a technical briefing and then a press conference to be held Thursday morning at the National Assembly.
On social media Wednesday, Minister Dubé stated that he was working “to ensure that 100 per cent of Quebecers are covered by the summer of 2026.” He specified that his government was continuing negotiations with the two medical federations in parallel.
The Fédération des médecins spécialistes du Québec (FMSQ) quickly denounced the “special law” that would be imposed on physicians.
“It seems clear that the government’s intention, beyond the rhetoric about collaboration, is to impose, through a special law, conditions of practice and a new framework agreement on medical specialists,” it responded in a press release.
“We will wait to read the bill tomorrow before going any further, but if that is the case, we will not let it happen,” they warned.
–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews
