Quebec Liberal MPs aim for province’s directive on language in health care | CBC news

At least three Quebec Liberal MPs have raised concerns with federal ministers about a new provincial directive they say will limit access to health care in the province for patients who cannot communicate in French.

The 31-page directive published last month by Quebec’s health department says that health workers in the province can only provide services in languages ​​other than French in exceptional cases – if the patient can demonstrate that they cannot communicate in or understand French properly, or if they can submitted papers showing that they are entitled to be served in English because of their historical English roots.

“I’m all for protecting the French language, but this is going a little too far when it comes to health,” Emmanuella Lambropoulos, MP for the Montreal riding of St-Laurent, told CBC News.

The decree states that Anglophones who have an official certificate showing their eligibility to receive educational services in English can receive health services in English.

The certificate is a document given to Anglophones who can prove that their ancestors in Quebec had English roots.

For patients who speak other languages ​​and cannot express themselves in French, the directive states that a healthcare professional “may disobey the obligation to use only French” as required.

Lambropoulos said it still gives far too much power to individual healthcare providers.

“I just don’t think it’s enough to say that the doctor is allowed to offer services in the language of his choice,” she said, adding that she had written to federal Health Minister Mark Holland about the issue.

Notre-Dame-de-Grâce-Westmount MP Anna Gainey said in a statement released Wednesday night that she also spoke with Holland to “share the serious concerns that constituents have expressed about the ordinance.”

“They are very concerned because the directive would interfere with effective communication between them and their carers.”

Gainey said he also spoke with caucus colleagues “to ensure that the federal government, which is a major partner under the Canada Health Act, is aware of these concerns and is prepared, if necessary, to step up and demand respect for its fundamental principles, particularly as it relates to universal access to care in both official languages.”

Mount Royal MP Anthony Housefather told CBC News he has reached out to both Holland and Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault, the federal minister responsible for official languages.

Pierrefonds-Dollard MP Sameer Zuberi and Lac St-Louis MP Francis Scarpaleggia also said they were concerned about the directive.

“If we start doing linguistics exams at the same time we do medical exams, this will not allow efficient delivery of health services,” Zuberi said.

“We have a sacred principle that the government should not interfere, or anyone should not interfere, in the doctor-patient relationship,” Scarpaleggia said.

parliamentary intervention could make a difference: advocate

Eric Maldoff, a long-time advocate for English rights and chairman of the Association for Good Health and Social Care, said it was encouraging to see federal MPs wading into the debate.

“This issue is being expanded from just a group of whining angels who are always complaining, which is how [provincial] government explains it and ignores it,” he said.

“The feds can withhold money if Quebec doesn’t provide services as it should,” he added, referring to how provincial health transfers are regulated under the Canada Health Act.

Quebec open to clear directive

In an interview with CBC Montreal’s morning radio show Day Jean-François Roberge, Quebec’s French language minister, denied Friday that his government is blocking access to health care and said he was open to clarifying the directive accordingly.

“We want to be clear because there’s been a lot of confusion since last week. I’ve heard and read that some people think the Quebec government is changing the rules,” Roberge told host Sean Henry.

“No questions will be asked, no documents need to be shown,” he said, if someone goes to the hospital and speaks in English to explain why they need health care.

He also said he plans to meet with Quebec’s English-speaking community groups next week. Asked why he had not done so before issuing the directive, he said he initially thought the document was clear and there was no misunderstanding.

Asked what would happen if a patient were denied access to health care in English, Roberge said such situations are theoretical. “I think that on a daily basis in our hospitals, people are doing their job correctly and the English-speaking community has its services in English.

As for the issues raised by the Montreal MPs, Roberge said it was all a “misunderstanding”.

“They’re reading papers with a lot of confusion, so I think it’s natural that they’re asking questions, that they want to be sure that nothing has changed.”

Ottawa expects provinces, territories to comply with health laws

At a news conference Thursday, federal Transportation Minister Pablo Rodriguez, who is also Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s lieutenant in Quebec, was asked if he thought the federal government should intervene.

“When you go to the doctor, it’s really a stressful moment, it’s an important moment. You don’t know what you have. It’s really a moment where it’s really important for you to be understood by the person you’re seeing,” he said, referring Boissonnault and Holland for further comment.

CBC News reached out to Boissonnault and Holland, as well as Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc, whose portfolio includes international affairs.

On Friday morning, Holland’s office issued a statement saying it expects “provinces and territories not to make decisions that would impede Canadians’ access to health care in their official language of choice.”

The statement also says that the Canada Health Act is written as such to recognize that health care is a provincial and territorial jurisdiction, recognizing that they are “responsible for planning and providing health services to best meet the needs of their populations.”

It also said the federal government is committed to protecting language minority communities across the country and “recognizes the importance of pursuing continued cooperation with the province of Quebec.”