MONTREAL - Quebec doctors say there's been a rise in maternity tourism over the last year and they're upset because some foreigners aren't paying their hospital fees.
They want Ottawa and Quebec to act but government officials have no immediate plans to address the situation.
Montreal doctors and most provinces couldn't provide statistics on the practice but figures obtained from the Canadian Institute for Health Information suggest it is more prevalent in Quebec.
In 2005-2006, the only year Quebec figures were available, the province delivered 273 babies to foreign mothers, compared with 169 in the rest of the country.
According to Citizenship and Immigration Canada, any person born in Canada who isn't a child of a diplomat is a citizen at birth.
Some Quebec doctors think Ottawa should tighten its citizenship policies while others simply want Quebec to cover the cost of unpaid obstetrician fees when foreigners skip their bill.
