After years of fighting between family doctors and the provincial government, a new agreement on funding has been reached in Alberta.
During an announcement on Dec. 19, Premier Danielle Smith, Health Minister Adriana LaGrange, and Alberta Medical Association President Dr. Shelley Duggan spoke about the agreement, which according to the government, will propel Alberta doctors to the top of the national pay scale.
“Our new model will reward physicians who build up stable practices and see more patients,” said Smith.
According to the agreement, doctors with at least 500 patients will be able to transition from the current fee-for-service model to the new panel model as of Jan. 1, 2025. Under the panel model, family physicians are paid based on patient interactions, the size and complexity of their patient panel, and their time - including direct and indirect care. It also includes incentives to provide after-hours and team-based care.
“We believe the new compensation model will relieve pressures on other areas of the health system, it will encourage comprehensive care in all phases of the patient's life, and it will give more other timely access to the care they need,” said Health Minister Adriana LaGrange.
Dr. Shelley Duggan, the president of the Alberta Medical Association said the new model will ensure doctors are paid for all the time they spend caring for patients, not just the face time they were compensated for under the previous fee-for-service model.
“This new model is going to mean that the work you do behind the scenes as a physician where you're filling out forms for patients, talking to specialists, trying to get drug approval, all of that is going to be compensated. Also, there's going to be compensation when you're supervising, for instance, other medical team members,” said Duggan.
The new agreement also includes higher pay for general physicians who work in rural communities and family doctors who also work in hospitals, a key feature for small communities like St. Paul, Bonnyville and Lac La Biche, where doctors often split their time between clinics, the emergency room, and acute care wards.
