Alberta has fewer family doctors than 10 years ago, says report

Alberta has fewer family doctors than 10 years ago, says report

Published 9:31 am Friday, February 6, 2026

Alberta has fewer family physicians per capita than it did in 2015, according to a report from the Angus Reid Institute.

The report said data from The Canadian Institute for Health Information shows the number of family doctors per capita has risen across the country since 2015 in every province except Alberta and Ontario. Because of an aging population with increasingly complicated medical needs, and more specialized family practices, Canadians also have less access to their family doctor.

Health Care Access: Half of Canadians either don’t have a family doctor or struggle to see the one they have reported that 14 per cent of Albertans did not have a family doctor in December 2025, and 31 per cent who had a family doctor said it was difficult to access their doctor.

Across Canada, 18 per cent did not have a family doctor, and 32 per cent said it was difficult to see their doctor.

The Ministry of Primary and Preventative Health Services said when measured on a full-time equivalent basis, which accounts for differences in how physicians work, Canadian Institute for Health Information data shows Alberta has more physicians per capita than the national average, including family physicians.

Statistics Canada data also shows Alberta has a higher percentage of the population reporting they have a family doctor or regular place of care compared to the national average.

“Alberta’s exceptional population growth over the past two years has slightly skewed the crude per capita count, but that figure is misleading; it does not represent the actual workforce or access for patients,” said the ministry, in a statement.

As of Dec. 31, 2025, 13,008 physicians were registered in Alberta — a net gain of 796 from the same period in 2024, representing the largest single-year increase on record. Half of that increase in the latest quarter were family doctors, the ministry added.

“Albertans searching for a primary care provider can use Home | Alberta Find a Doctor. As of November 2025, the number of primary care providers accepting new patients reached a four-year high of 724. Calgary and Edmonton have seen the most dramatic gains, with providers accepting new patients increasing by more than 400 per cent and 180 per cent, respectively.

“Alberta’s physician workforce has steadily increased, and we remain focused on recruitment,” the ministry said.

Sharif Haji, Alberta’s New Democrat Shadow Minister for Primary & Preventative Health Services, said Albertans deserve timely access to a family doctor and emergency care.

“Alberta has fewer family doctors per patient than in 2019. Yet this government is congratulating themselves on their ‘record-breaking’ doctor recruitment numbers. The gap between reality and UCP rhetoric is clear, with 59 per cent of Albertans surveyed worried about accessing emergency care,” said Haji, in a statement.

“Forty-five per cent of Albertans surveyed don’t have timely access to a family doctor, based on new data released today. That is simply unacceptable,” he added.

An overwhelming majority of Albertans say their health care system has deteriorated in the last decade, and across Canada it’s not much better, according to the Angus Reid Institute.

Seventy-three per cent of Albertans say the quality of their health care system has deteriorated, compared to 70 per cent of Canadians.

The report said accessing emergency care, specialists, diagnostic tests is also not easy in Alberta.

For those who needed a diagnostic test in the past six months, 51 per cent said it was very difficult or difficult to access a test, compared to 46 per cent of Canadians.

Accessing an appointment with a specialist in the past six months was difficult or very difficult for 51 per cent of Canadians, and 50 per cent of Albertans. Another four per cent of Canadians found it impossible, along with two per cent of Albertans.

In Alberta and Canada, 59 per cent of people were not that confident, or not confident at all, that they or someone in their family could get emergency medical care in a timely fashion.