Negotiations between the F\u00e9d\u00e9ration des m\u00e9decins omnipraticiens du Qu\u00e9bec (FMOQ) and the Legault government have broken down, nine days after they resumed.<\/p>\n
On his way into the National Assembly on Thursday morning, Premier Fran\u00e7ois Legault said that he was learning the news at the same time as the reporters there and added that, \u201cThere are hundreds of thousands of Quebecers who don\u2019t have access to a family doctor. So we need to find solutions together.\u201d<\/p>\n
The FMOQ spokesperson confirmed Thursday morning that negotiations had ended, adding that nothing was working and that the government remained entrenched in its position.<\/p>\n
Treasury Board President France \u00c9laine Duranceau expressed her disappointment following the announcement, \u201cWell, I\u2019m surprised. First of all, I\u2019m surprised. And I\u2019m a bit disappointed because during a negotiation, there are hard times and discussions that are more difficult. But it doesn\u2019t mean that you have to break the table and discuss that openly. I think I spoke with Dr. Amyot. We\u2019re still at the table on our end. So we\u2019ll be ready when they are to continue the conversation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI think the FMOQ really exposed that the vulnerability levels that we needed to work on that. So we\u2019ve been having those conversations over the past days and weeks. And we agree that there\u2019s something to do there. We also made commitments for the GMFs with regards to the resources that they need. So there are many other things that I discussed at the table. And ultimately, whatever the agreement is, we\u2019re open to modify Bill number 2 to reflect that. So a lot of openness, but we can\u2019t be, it takes two to tango, right?\u201d<\/p>\n
Negotiations resumed Nov. 26<\/p>\n
The CAQ government and the FMOQ announced the resumption of negotiations on Nov. 26 after FMOQ president Dr. Marc-Andr\u00e9 Amyot travelled to Quebec City for a sit-down meeting with Premier Legault.<\/p>\n
The provincial government then stated it was open to making amendments to Bill 2, which has generated significant discontent within the medical community.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe meeting provided an opportunity to discuss possible solutions to the current impasse,\u201d the FMOQ wrote in a\u00a0Facebook post<\/a>\u00a0afterwards. \u201cThe FMOQ reiterated the urgent need for action to stabilize the situation on the ground, as physicians announce their departures and patients lose access to essential care.<\/p>\n \u201cWe said that we were open if we had an agreement to change bill number two. And this agreement needs to show that we\u2019re taking more patients. And more patients are covered by the general, the GPs. So first element, open to modify bill number two,\u201d said Duranceau on Thursday. \u201cSecond element, we\u2019re also open to review the level of vulnerability for various patients and reflect the difficulty or the challenges of those vulnerabilities. And we\u2019ve made important commitments relatively to the GMFs. And also, the FMOQ has asked us to have a transition committee to make sure that in the event of an agreement, things would go smoothly. And we said we were open to that.\u201d<\/p>\n Since then family clinics have said they will be forced to close if Bill 2 comes into effect in the new year and said \u201cIt\u2019s going to be chaos.\u201d<\/p>\n