Provincial independence and the loss of portable health benefits

By Charles S. Shaver, MD “Quebecers do not want to return to old constitutional issues.” – Quebec Premier Christine Frechette. This coming Oct. 19, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has organized... L’article Provincial independence and the loss of portable health benefits est apparu en premier sur Sherbrooke Record .

By Charles S. Shaver, MD “Quebecers do not want to return to old constitutional issues.” – Quebec Premier Christine Frechette. This coming Oct. 19, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has organized a vote on whether to have a referendum on Alberta independence.

Also, if the PQ wins the early October election, Paul St.-Pierre Plamondon has promised to hold a third referendum on Quebec independence, likely toward the end of his mandate. An Ipsos poll found that 15 to 18 per cent of Albertans were committed to separation. Meanwhile, CTV and Global polls found that 26 to 29 per cent of Quebecers favoured separation, a historic low.

About 62 to 71 per cent rejected having a third referendum. Few have mentioned the effect on access to health care within an independent province or elsewhere in Canada. A vote for independence would cause many physicians, nurses, and health professionals to promptly flee.

According to a CBC article from June 27, 2026, from October 2025 to June 2026, the College of Physicians and Surgeons in New Brunswick granted 47 licences and received 156 applications from Quebec physicians. Also, between late October and mid-November 2025, nearly 300 Quebec physicians applied to work in Ontario; over half were family physicians. As I discussed in my article of May 29, 2026 in The Sherbrooke Record, with independence, residents would no longer be under the protection of the Canada Health Act.

They would be treated as “non-residents of Canada” when seeking health care in another part of Canada. After a permanent move, they would lack health coverage by their new province for three months. Due to threats of President Donald Trump and also the declining Canadian dollar, many of us tend to avoid the United States and vacation in another province.

About 11.3 per cent of domestic overnight and day trips to Quebec came from other provinces. Were Quebec to become independent, not only would its residents be reluctant to visit other provinces, but there would be a severe economic impact on hotels, restaurants, and the entire tourist industry in Quebec as Canadians from other provinces were deterred from visiting due to the risk of unexpected accidents or illnesses with major out-of-pocket expenses. Since 1984, the Quebec government has ignored Section 11 of the Canada Health Act, and is the only province that has refused to sign the Reciprocal Medical Billing agreement which covers out-of-province medical/surgical care for most Canadians.

Physicians across Canada legally charge Quebecers as “non-residents of Canada” with fees 2 to 5 times the rates in their provincial schedule of benefits. Should Quebec or Alberta become independent, its residents would then also be billed as foreigners by hospitals in other provinces. Hospitals also require payment prior to discharge or before elective surgery.

Consider a few rates for “Non-residents of Canada”: St. Paul’s Hospital in Vancouver charges $1,355 for an emergency department visit, $4,690 daily for a standard room, and $13,110 for an ICU bed. Vancouver General has a rate of $18,105 daily for the ICU. ... Subscribe to read the full story and more, published in full every Friday L’article Provincial independence and the loss of portable health benefits est apparu en premier sur Sherbrooke Record .