Sask. government offers $20M in ‘stabilization funding’ to family doctors

Family doctors in Saskatchewan are getting a funding boost.

On Friday, Saskatchewan’s health ministry announced $20 million in what it called “stabilization funding” for community-based family doctors operating under the fee-for-service model.

The ministry said the funds will go to doctors who provide in-person services in clinic settings in order to “support the delivery of essential health care services to patients in their communities.”

The government said the funding is a transitional measure, which will let doctors prepare to adopt “a new made-in-Saskatchewan family physician payment model based on blended capitation.”

According to the ministry, blended capitation offers remuneration to family doctors through a base fee for a number of standard services and additional fee-for-service payments for extra services provided beyond the standard.

That new model is currently being developed by the Ministry of Health and Saskatchewan Medical Association (SMA), the government noted. Premier Scott Moe told reporters in Moose Jaw that the province’s health ministers were at the SMA meeting on Friday.

“There has been much discussion and work on transitioning to a new model to ensure that we are competitive with the rest of Canada as we move forward …,” Moe said.

“In fairness, we’d like to be moving quicker with the implementation of that model, but it does take some time to ensure that we do get it correct (and) do get it right and (are) always focusing on ultimately the service that is being provided to Saskatchewan residents.”

Full-time and part-time doctors who deliver services based on the fee-for-service model can apply for up to $40,000 of the stabilization funding each, the ministry said. Those who do will be asked to declare their intention to continue practising in Saskatchewan until the new physician agreement is ratified.

Everett Hindley, Saskatchewan’s minister of health, said timely and local access to family medicine is very important to families across the province.

“We appreciate the ongoing efforts of Saskatchewan’s family doctors and their ability to provide quality care to patients in their communities,” Hindley said in a statement.

“We are in a competitive environment with other jurisdictions to attract and retain family physicians and this funding will help our efforts to keep our doctors here.”

Specific details of how the funding will be distributed will be detailed in a “forthcoming” letter of agreement between the ministry and the Saskatchewan Medical Association, the provincial government noted.

Dr. Annette Epp, the association’s president, said the announcement shows the government’s commitment to addressing the challenges family doctors are currently facing.

“We welcome this first step toward a final agreement for Saskatchewan physicians, which includes a new payment model for family physicians,” Epp said in a statement.

Saskatchewan is struggling with a shortage of family doctors, and the provincial government has taken some large steps to attract, train and retain more health-care workers.

In Moose Jaw, a clinic recently opted out of Saskatchewan’s publicly funded health-care system, citing financial challenges stemming from the fee-for-service model.