Groups pressure Quebec to cover perinatal care costs for migrant women

Quebec opposition MNAs and other groups and organizations want Quebec to guarantee care for pregnant women regardless of their immigration status. (Teresa Crawford / The Canadian Press)

Citizens, unions, organizations and MNAs are putting pressure on the Legault government to ensure public coverage of perinatal care for all pregnant women living in Quebec, regardless of their immigration status.

They are calling on the government to stop limiting access to perinatal care for pregnant migrants living in Quebec whose immigration status does not give them access to health insurance.

A petition sponsored by the Quebec Liberal Party with more than 3,000 signatures has been submitted to the National Assembly. The College of Physicians, Médecins du monde and the Regroupement Les sages-femmes du Québec (RSFQ) are also supporting the petition. Quebec Solidaire (QS) tabled a bill on the subject on Wednesday.

During question period, Health Minister Christian Dubé said he would continue to look at what could be done.

“We will always come up with solutions to situations that are worrying, exceptional, out of the ordinary, but at some point we have to be able to care for our Quebecers, care for the people who live here, and we still have to protect the fact that there are a lot of people we need to care for,” said Dubé.

A bill was tabled by QS immigration, francization and integration spokesperson Guillaume Cliche-Rivard: “To protect our unborn babies. We have to be able to protect their mothers during pregnancy and throughout the perinatal period. It's a question of human dignity, equal opportunities, public health and prevention.”

He added that extending RAMQ coverage to pregnant migrant women would cost “quite a bit less” than the cost of curative care afterwards.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Dec. 4, 2024.