N.S. bill aims to make it easier for Canadian health-care professionals to work in province
Nova Scotia is cutting red tape and some administrative burdens within the health-care industry to allow health-care providers more time to see patients.
Health Minister Michelle Thompson introduced The Patient Access to Care Act in the legislature Tuesday, which is designed to make it easier for health-care professionals from other parts of Canada to work in Nova Scotia.
The province says highlights of the act include:
- licensing or registration criteria will be waived for health-care providers coming from other parts of Canada, as needed and in accordance with Canadian free trade obligations
- regulators cannot charge health-care professionals licensed in other parts of Canada an application fee
- applications must be processed within five business days
- supports the creation of regulations that will apply the above provisions to non-Canadian jurisdictions
- allows all regulators to recognize the credentials and licences of health-care professionals trained outside Canada
- ensures regulated health-care professionals can work to their full training and allows expanded scope of practice through regulations rather than legislation
- employers will only be able to request a sick note if an employee is absent for more than five days or has already had two absences of five days or less in the previous 12-month period
- allows the government to prescribe Workers Compensation Board forms and documents to improve the process for Nova Scotians and doctors
"If we continue to do things the same way, we are going to keep getting the same results," said Premier Tim Houston in a news release Tuesday.
"That is unacceptable for Nova Scotia, and that is unacceptable to me. The legislation introduced today includes things that should have been done a long time ago that will help Nova Scotians get the care they need faster."
Thompson says the province will cover the initial licensing fees for health-care workers who hold a licence in other parts of Canada.
Those fees range from $1,000 to $2,000 a year. Application fees can be up to $200 annually.
According to Thompson, 50,000 hours a year per doctor are dedicated to providing sick notes for patients.
"Paperwork shouldn't stand in the way of helping Nova Scotians get the care they need. When someone is sick, the last thing they should be thinking about is that they need to get a doctor's note. It's also the last thing a doctor needs to write, when they could be seeing a patient with more urgent care needs," said Thompson.
Doctors also completed more than 26,000 report forms for worker's compensation last year.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.