Greens call for new billing model for B.C. doctors

The B.C. Green Party is calling for the Horgan government to take action to deal with the lack of family doctors in the province.

Leader Sonia Furstenau says between 750,000 to 900,000 residents are without a family doctor and the shortage is predicted to grow. She said the government needs to urgently improve their payment model and remove administrative barriers to keep family physicians in their communities.

“The billing model is very outdated and does not provide the stability needed for good medical care,“ said Furstenau, who is the MLA for Cowichan Valley.

“Doctors are basically running a small business instead of putting their focus into caring for their community members. The current fee-for-service model is turning prospective doctors away from family practice and British Columbians are the ones bearing the burden. This government needs to explore models of practice that maintain or improve the current level of in-person, in-community care that doctors are providing.”

Furstenau said the government has opened a number of urgent and primary care centres, but they are failing to achieve the goal.

“New graduates want to work as part of a team, and they want consistent salaries, time with their young families, and to focus on providing healthcare instead of running a small business. After speaking with family doctors and patient advocates, it is clear what a next step forward must be,” said Furstenau.

Funstenau says modernizing the payment process would reward physicians for providing quality health care while letting them stay independent of government.

“We need to make it desirable to be a family doctor in British Columbia,” Furstenau remarked.