The Ford government has reached a new deal with Ontario’s doctors, announcing on Thursday a four-year agreement that boosts compensation for physicians and includes measures that will encourage more to practise comprehensive family medicine.
The agreement between the province and the Ontario Medical Association will see physicians get a 7.3 per cent increase in compensation over the next three years. This builds on a 10 per cent increase that doctors received in the first year of the agreement, awarded by an arbitrator last year.听 聽聽聽
The revamped model incentivizes physicians to take on new patients and will allow doctors to bill for clinical and administrative tasks, such as charting and reviewing test results. The OMA has previously said the lack of compensation for this behind-the-scenes clinical administration has been a top concern for family doctors, leading to burnout.听
Both the OMA and the government say the modernized payment structure will help attract doctors to comprehensive family medicine and retain those who may be looking to leave the profession. The ongoing primary care crisis has left two million Ontarians without a family doctor.听
OMA president Dr. Zainab聽Abdurrahman said the arbitration award addresses long-standing challenges and represents聽鈥渁 turning point for family medicine in Ontario.鈥
鈥淭he enhancements to the FHO+ model will help reduce administrative burdens, reward the time doctors spend with complex patients and encourage more continuous care,鈥 she聽said in a statement to the Star, adding that these changes will make family practice a more attractive and sustainable career choice.听
The Star spoke with three about their problems, solutions that would help them and why, despite
The new model, called FHO+, opens additional spaces for doctors to join family health organizations, which the province says is the most widely adopted primary care model in Ontario.听
In a news release, the Ministry of Health said the four-year physician services agreement, in addition to historic investments in primary care, also provides new funding for in-hospital anesthesia services and hospital on-call coverage to improve patients’ access to hospital care.听聽
Megan Ogilvie is a Toronto-based health reporter for the Star.
Follow her on Twitter: or reach her via email: mogilvie@thestar.ca.
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