Dear Members:
This President’s Letter is in follow up to my President’s Letters of July 29 and July 30, which reported the results of our referendum on physician confidence in the Minister and my outreach to the Premier. I wanted to let members know where things are at this stage.
Regarding our request to the Premier, we have not yet received a response and look forward to hearing from him. The Premier must deal with many issues facing Alberta and we appreciate any attention he can give to the challenges ahead in reaching an agreement.
We have received a communication from the Minister of Health. This includes a request for a written response to what effectively was their first proposal, provided back in November 2019. There have been numerous AMA proposals since then, both before and after termination of the AMA Agreement. We can and will provide another document, at which point we understand that government will then respond to us in writing. Potentially, this could lead to a much greater understanding between the parties.
This has all been going on in the midst of a lot of other activity, including the material we have sent out regarding understanding physician payments (Context Matters: The Facts About Physician Compensation in Alberta) and our response to the discussion paper on self-regulation.
I want to acknowledge and thank you for the support so many of you have offered. Many members are directly contributing their own efforts toward reaching an agreement so that, as a profession, we can focus on delivering the best available health care for Albertans.
In your service,
Christine P. Molnar, MD, FRCPC
President, Alberta Medical Association