B.C. family doctors get $118M lifeline

VANCOUVER - Health Minister Adrian Dix says family doctors in British Columbia will be eligible for an average $25,000 each to help tide them over until a new compensation model is established this fall.

Dix says the intention of the one-time funding is to keep clinics open and give family doctors financial relief amid rising operational costs.

To help patients get continued access to primary care services, our government and @DoctorsOfBC are providing stabilization funding to support family doctors throughout BC. @dr_rdosanjh https://t.co/6op95FOdFs

— Adrian Dix (@adriandix) August 24, 2022

British Columbia is experiencing a crisis in access to health care and nearly one million residents do not have a family doctor.

The total $118 million in funding is available to about 3,480 family doctors who have their own practices and 1,100 working in walk-in clinics.

Dr. Ramneek Dosanjh, president of Doctors of BC, says operational costs have risen to eat up an average 30 to 40 per cent of a family doctor's income, which incentivizes them to leave the practice.

She says the funding will help "stop the bleeding" and keep clinic doors open until a much-needed new pay model is revealed this fall.

"We've heard loud and clear from our doctors that this is a much-needed step and we can't allow clinic closures to continue at the rate they have been," Dosanjh says.