Civil rights lawyer wants Quebec permit system for doctors declared unconstitutional

Montreal-based civil rights lawyer Julius Grey says he will ask a judge to suspend Quebec's system for determining how many family doctors can practise in a specific region.

The move comes after Health Minister Christian Dubé recently reduced the number of new family doctors who are allowed to practise in Montreal and increased the number who can practise in nearby suburbs.

"It's very clear that even after the additional 30 being allocated to Lanaudière, Montérégie, to Laval, the number of patients per doctor is still lower in those regions than Montreal," Dubé said at a news conference today.

Grey told reporters today the system is unconstitutional and he plans to file a court challenge next week to have the placement system suspended.

Dr. Mark Roper, a Montreal family doctor and the director of the primary care division at the McGill University Health Centre's department of family medicine, says nearly 650,000 people in the city don't have a family doctor, more than in any other region of the province.

He says the government's permit system underestimates the number of family doctors needed in Montreal and puts people's health at risk.

The Opposition Liberals have described Dubé's decision as political interference, which routed doctors from areas represented by the Liberals to those represented by the governing Coalition Avenir Québec party. Dubé denies the charge, calling the decision an issue of fairness.

"If taking care of the people in the 450 is political, then this is a political decision," he said.

"We need to treat every Quebecer the same way."