The Ministry of Health is arguing in arbitration with the Ontario Medical Association that recruitment and retention of doctors is not a major concern.
The argument from the province comes as the O-M-A, which represents Ontario’s doctors, has repeatedly warned that more than two-million residents don’t have a family doctor and thousands of physician jobs are going unfilled.
The province is in the midst of negotiations with the O-M-A for the next Physician Services Agreement, which determines how doctors are compensated, covering the next four years.
But one of the doctors involved says the talks are going so poorly that an arbitrator is now being asked to determine compensation levels for the first year while the two sides work on the 2025-to-28 period.