The Alberta government has tabled a bill that would open the door for surgeons to charge patients for privately-delivered procedures while keeping a foot in the public system and billing taxpayers.
Premier Danielle Smith’s government previously suggested family doctors might be eligible, but they’re not included in the proposed legislation.
Surgical Services Minister Matt Jones says the bill is about offering flexibility to doctors, reducing wait times, and giving Albertans the option to pay for procedures without having to travel out of province.
He told reporters Monday it would also help recruit and retain health workers in Alberta, countering criticism it will siphon professionals from the public system.
“Alberta is not an island. Alberta competes for health-care professionals all across Canada and North America,” he said.
The bill doesn’t cap private surgical costs for procedures like hip, knee or cataract surgeries, but the government promises to lay down guardrails to protect public health care.
That may include requiring doctors to perform a minimum amount of practice in the public system before expanding to offer private surgeries, or restricting some specialties to public practice if shortages emerge.
Primary Health Minister Adriana LaGrange, who introduced the bill, said about 14 physicians in Alberta are currently opted out of the public system in favor of private practice. She said the new dual practice model would allow them to move back and forth without the red tape of a registration process that can take 18 months.
For now, LaGrange said, family doctors won’t be eligible to switch between the two.
“Our priority right now is to make sure that every person in Alberta is attached to a primary care provider. And so, at this point in time, restricting family doctors not to provide private practice – that they would be fully within the public system — only makes sense,” she said.
Cancer and emergency surgeries would also only be offered through the public system, and private surgical facilities wouldn’t be able to charge patients for those operations.
Other changes under the bill mean private or employer-sponsored plans would first pay drug costs for Albertans, and the government-sponsored plan would pick up the remaining portion.
LaGrange said while it would be the payer of last resort, the government’s public prescription coverage would still serve as a safety net for those with no other coverage.
She said 76 per cent of Albertans have additional insurance, like plans offered through employers.
LaGrange said she doesn’t think private insurers would adjust their coverage for Albertans in response to the legislation.
Government officials estimate the prescription coverage changes could save taxpayers between $35 and $54 million per year.
Another proposed change would stop employers from cutting off coverage based on age, preserving coverage for those 65 and older who are still working.
As part of Alberta’s plan to replace paper health cards, which have long been critiqued for being flimsy and susceptible to damage, the bill paves the way for the option of adding a personal health number to a driver’s licence or ID card by late 2026.
Albertans would need to periodically confirm eligibility and renew their health number, but the legislation doesn’t detail timelines. For now, a stopgap replacement for paper health cards is available as a digital option.
This report by The Canadian Press
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