Negotiations between family doctors and the Treasury Board for the renewal of their work agreement continue with a new irritant: remuneration for teleconsultation.
In a communication to its 10,000 members on Friday, the negotiating team of the Federation of General Practitioners of Quebec (FMOQ) considers the government’s offer aimed at extending an agreement allowing billing for medical teleconsultations to be insufficient.
This expires on December 31.
This proposal results in a substantial reduction in remuneration for teleconsultations. The compensation offered by the government is derisory, regardless of the context of practice.
According to the team of FMOQ, the offer is, in fact, so low that in reality, a family doctor who devotes an entire day to teleconsultation would not qualify for a day worked according to the criteria of the RAMQ.
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The president of the FMOQ, Marc-André Amyot.
Photo: - / Jérôme Labbé
The offer amounts to $6.22 per five minutes on the phone, $8.29 on video.
According to the document consulted by -, Quebec intends limit remuneration for medical services performed via telemedicine exclusively for visits following a first face-to-face visit
.
The duration of visits carried out remotely is less and these visits do not allow all aspects of the patient to be appreciated, particularly for the physical examination of the patient.
By email, the FMOQ precise that currently, 12% of consultations are carried out remotely, a modern and effective solution that promotes medical productivity and that of Quebecers
. The FMOQ urges the government to reconsider its position and support telemedicine as a sustainable solution to the challenges of access to care.
In the office of the President of the Treasury Board, we reiterate that discussions must continue at the negotiating table
.
We fully recognize that telehealth is a solution that improves the efficiency of the system and Quebecers’ access to health care. Our proposal, made at the negotiating table, is based on best practices that exist elsewhere.
$1.3 billion over 5 years
Teleconsultation has grown significantly during the pandemic.
According to data obtained from the RAMQ, to date in 2024, approximately 7,500 general practitioners have billed $131 million for telemedicine services provided on a fee-for-service basis. A sum which has reached 1.3 billion dollars since 2020.
More than 40% of the services provided by general practitioners from April to December 2020 were provided by teleconsultations.
A way of doing things which led to a development by the College of Physicians of Quebec.
We cannot do anything with teleconsultation and, again, I repeat, the majority of situations require a physical examination with a face-to-face meeting.
said its president, Mauril Gaudreault.
Last May, a standoff also occurred aimed at extending another letter of understanding linked to a bonus granted to doctors to encourage them to remove patients from the waiting list of the Doctor’s Access Center of family (GAMF).
A measure that amounts to nearly $300 million over two years.
The exit of the FMOQ also comes a few days before the tabling of a bill by the Minister of Health aimed at forcing new family doctors and specialist doctors trained in Quebec to practice in the public network during the first years of their career.
