We are closely monitoring your feedback on the legislation the government has tabled this month. Our formal response will be guided by your concerns. 

View the list of bills we are monitoring.

Here is what we’ve heard so far: 

Eliminating Sick Notes: The legislation is the strongest in Canada and will ban employer sick notes for absences of up to 7 consecutive days, or 10 cumulative days over a one year period. 

• Concern: We want the legislation to kick in sooner than the proposed 6 month waiting period. 

Patient Rights: The legislation intends to clearly set patient expectations when accessing health care, requiring all facilities, including doctors’ offices, to post signage about patients’ ​“rights.” Physicians have told us the rights already reflect their commitment to treating patients with respect and dignity. 

• Concern: Physicians are rightly worried about their ability to meet patients’ expectations about one of the rights, timely access to care, when so many of the unreasonably long waits patients experience are beyond physicians’ control, and grounded in broken system issues. We are seeking further information about this. 

Therapeutic Substitutes by Pharmacists: This legislation would allow pharmacists prescribe a substitute drug if it has the same therapeutic effect as a drug originally prescribed by another health care practitioner. Doctors will also still be able to write ​“no subs” on any prescription as is the case now when wishing to avoid generic substitutions. We’ve heard from physicians who see the benefit of saving time on pharmacy requests for common substitutions due to drug shortages or to offer cheaper alternatives to patients. Other physicians have raised concerns that therapeutic substitutions may lead to potential conflicts of interest for pharmacists or pharmacy owners. 

• Concern: More clarification is needed on how pharmacists will report back to the prescribing physician about substitutions to ensure the change is documented without increasing administrative burden. 

Have we missed anything? As we continue to engage with government leaders on your behalf, we invite you to share your opinions and questions on these bills by emailing us at practiceadvice@ doc​tors​man​i​to​ba​.com.