Invitation aux représentants des médias

For immediate release
YES TO BETTER ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE, NO TO BILL 20
Montréal, December 13, 2014 – CNW/Telbec – Organizations representing family doctors working in different
spheres of activity and students in family medicine who were gathered for the General Council of the Fédération
des médecins omnipraticiens du Québec (FMOQ) joined the FMOQ in unequivocally condemning the content of
Bill 20. The coercive, simplistic and mathematic approach on which Bill 20 is based may have potentially
disastrous consequences on access to health care, the quality of care and the future of family medicine. The
following doctors and one representative of students in medicine have come together to denounce Bill 20:
Dr. Louis Godin for the Fédération des médecins omnipraticiens du Québec
Dr. Maxine Dumas Pilon for the Collège québécois des médecins de famille
Dr. Bernard Mathieu for the Association des médecins d’urgence du Québec
Dr. Andrée Gagnon for the Association des omnipraticiens en périnatalité du Québec
Dr. Ian Ajmo for the Regroupement des omni-intensivistes du Québec
Dr. Jean Pelletier for the Table des directeurs des départements universitaires de médecine de famille et de
médecine d'urgence du Québec
Dr. Guy-Bertin Tcheumi for the Fédération des médecins résidents du Québec
Mr. Alexis Rompré Brodeur for the Fédération médicale étudiante du Québec
“Minister Barrette’s Bill 20 absolutely dehumanizes the practice of family medicine by transforming it into
assembly-line work. He also proposes penalizing family doctors who take on and follow sicker patients as well as
doctors who take more time with their patients. All this, while working to impose unrealistic patient quotas on
each family doctor and prolonging Québec family doctors’ obligation to work in hospitals, which is a reality
unique in Canada. This just does not make any sense. Does Minister Barrette realize that we treat people, not
numbers? Bill 20 could have seriously harmful consequences on our fellow citizens. This is why we will continue
to fight Bill 20 over the coming months,” said Dr. Louis Godin, President of the FMOQ.
If adopted by the National Assembly, Bill 20 may create numerous negative consequences, many of which will
have a direct impact on the quality of care provided to patients, including:
• compromised quality and continuity of care, as already overworked family doctors may not be able to
handle their patient load
• shorter medical consultations and a potential drop in quality of medical care in order to meet patient
quotas
• greater difficulty for family doctors to treat vulnerable patients who require more of their time
• a desertion of family medicine as a career choice by medical students
• the premature retirement of family doctors approaching the end of their careers, due to the
unacceptable constraints imposed by Bill 20, which are unheard of elsewhere in Canada
“With the Health Minister’s approach, the government of Québec is compromising access to primary health care
in Québec. It is also jeopardizing all the hard work that has been carried out to promote family medicine over the
past five years by sending a message that smacks of ignorance and disdain for the work of Québec’s family
doctors. Family doctors in Québec work hard, both in their clinics and in healthcare facilities. And they are ready
to do more to improve access. Moreover, the FMOQ proposed a plan in this regard in the fall of 2013, but the
government has never expressed any interest for discussing access, until just recently. For the sake of our
patients and for maintaining the humane, empathetic and excellent quality of care in Québec, family doctors
now more than ever say ‘NO!’ to Bill 20,” concluded Dr. Godin.

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The FMOQ is an 8,000-member strong Professional union representing the general practitioners of Québec. Its
mission is to represent the professional and scientific interests of its members. For more information on the
FMOQ, please consult its Web site at www.fmoq.org
Source: Fédération des médecins omnipraticiens du Québec
Jean-Pierre Dion, Director of Communications, [e-mail]
Marie Ruel, Communications Advisor, [email protected]rg
Tel. : [phone] | Toll-free: 1-800-361-8499 | Media: 514-878-9160