Minister Christian Dubé has given himself three years to abolish the use of private agencies in the healthcare network sector.
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Mr. Dubé tabled his Bill 10 on Wednesday to wean the healthcare network, which is increasingly relying on the independent workforce, be it nurses, beneficiary caregivers or other employing entities.
A timetable presented during a technical briefing explains that the “urban sectors” must finalize their agreements by next year. The “adjacent sectors” must do the same in 2025, then the outlying sectors in 2026.
However, many details remain to be regulated by regulation, including the sectors specifically addressed by the roadmap.
Quebec has several goals with its bill. The government can now set a maximum hourly rate per job title, while this has increased by 62% since 2016.
The Department of Health (MSSS) can also decide in which sectors an entity can do business with a private agency. The same applies to the extension of existing agreements.
Quebec is also giving itself investigative powers and administrative and criminal sanctions to enforce these new rules. Penalties for an entity may be up to $75,000 for a first violation and up to $150,000 for a repeat violation.
Agency use is exploding
Figures released by Quebec on Wednesday show the use of private agencies has exploded since 2016.
From 4.8 million hours, the use of independent workers has increased to 14.8 million in 2022. In terms of cost, turnover has gone from $200 million to $960 million in six years.
The presence of employees from private agencies leads to unfair working conditions, argues in Quebec.
Just over 11,000 “full-time equivalents” work for private agencies, according to MSSS.
However, Quebec estimates that it will need about 120,000 health network workers over the next five years.
More details to come…
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