Quebec doctors say colour system for patient priority is a bad idea

Quebec is once again trying to reassure people they won’t lose their family doctor.

The issue of who is first in line for a family doctor came up in the fall, but Health Minister Christian Dubé said Quebecers don`t need to worry about being bumped down.

“No way. I just want to be clear: the patients that have a doctor right now will keep it,” Dube said.

The Quebec Federation of General Practitioners isn’t so sure. It’s currently in negotiations to reach a new agreement with Quebec and received an offer outlining a colour system that categorizes patients.

“They wrote it in the offer that they put on the table. We’re going to classify patients according to colour codes. Green, yellow, orange and red,” Dr. Samer Daher of the Montreal Association of Family Physicians said.

Daher said Quebecers classified as red and orange would be prioritized.

“We have over 4.9 million Quebecers that would fit into the green and yellow so does that mean they lose their family doctor so that the others can have a family doctor?” he said.

Opposition parties at the National Assembly also said it’s a bad idea.

“It’s frightening. It’s dangerous,” Québec Solidaire MNA Vincent Marissal said. “How do you know that you have diabetes or maybe a cancer? It’s called prevention.”

“This is not how we’re going to have a better coverage of patients with a family doctor,” said Liberal Madwa-Nika Cadet.

The Parti Québécois questions why a colour system is even necessary.

“What is the purpose of the code and how will you apply the code and to whom?” the PQ’s Joel Arseneau said. “What’s going to happen to those 2 million citizens who are still waiting for a doctor?”