Trudeau and premiers agree to enhance mobility for doctors and other professionals

With the ongoing trade war against the U.S. encouraging Canadian policymakers to lift interprovincial trade barriers, there is a renewed push to increase mobility for doctors and other licensed professionals.Last week, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the 13 premiers of Canada put out a joint statement agreeing to take “meaningful action to further liberalize and support the Canadian market so that goods, services, and workers can move freely.”“First Ministers agreed that certified professionals with credentials in one jurisdiction should be able to work anywhere in Canada. Whether relocating for family reasons or pursuing job opportunities elsewhere, workers should be free to do what they are trained to do and contribute to the Canadian economy,” the first ministers said in their March 5 statement.Dr. Joss Reimer, president of the Canadian Medical Association (CMA) called the commitment from the first ministers “very exciting.”“We're certainly more optimistic than ever that we might be able to get this pushed through and allow physicians to work anywhere in Canada,” she told the Medical Post in an interview.As it currently stands in most provinces, physicians who are licensed to practice in one province have to go through a lengthy application process with a plethora of paperwork and pay thousands of dollars in fees in order to practice in another province.Going through this process may be worth the hassle for physicians seeking to permanently relocate, but all this red tape poses challenges when it comes to filling urgent staffing shortages during time of crisis, particularly in rural and remote communities.“We also see all of these ERs closing across the country, and perhaps there's somebody who works in Edmonton, but is willing to go to a remote part of B.C. and help out to keep their ER open for the weekend,” Dr. Reimer explained. “If they had to go and apply for a license, submit all that paperwork, pay thousands of dollars, they're not going to be as willing to go for the weekend.”Meanwhile, the Federation of Medical Regulatory Authorities of Canada (FMRAC)—the body that represents the 13 medical regulatory authorities—has also been pushing for a national licensure for physicians. In response to the statement from the first ministers, FMRAC president Dr. George Carruthers told the Medical Post that the regulatory colleges are still waiting to hear specifics from the provinces.“We are hearing from various provincial governments that they are looking at amendments to legislation meet the direction given by the first ministers, but we do not have specifics. Most of the registrars across the country are in the process of meeting with their respective governments to discuss any proposed changes. Over the next couple of weeks, we would hope that most colleges will have a better understanding of what will change, if anything, in the regulation of physicians,” Dr. Carruthers said in a statement.A CMA poll from two years ago also found that 95% of physicians were supportive a pan-Canadian licensure.“The key is that Canadians want this and physicians want this. We've surveyed physicians and over 90% of them want to see some ability for them to move around the country. So this is something we know we need to move in this direction and it is achievable,” Dr. Reimer said.Some provinces have already taken steps easier facilitate physician mobility, even before the trade war. In 2023, the four Atlantic provinces launched the Atlantic Registry, enabling any physician registered in Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia or New Brunswick to practice anywhere in Atlantic Canada if they pay an extra $500 annual fee and fill out a short questionnaire. The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario also offers certificates for temporary independent practice, charging 25% of the annual fee for out-of-province doctors to practice for up to three months.

Trudeau and premiers agree to enhance mobility for doctors and other professionals

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