Family doctors in Quebec say they have successfully registered 500,000 new patients one month ahead of schedule. The Fédération des médecins omnipraticiens du Québec (FMOQ) made the announcement on Wednesday morning during a press conference at the National Assembly, alongside Health Minister Sonia Bélanger. This goal was part of the agreement reached in December between the Quebec government and family doctors. If it was achieved before June 30, 2026, doctors could receive an additional $75 million, according to the terms of the agreement. According to the minister, people without a doctor who were flagged as vulnerable by the Régie de l’assurance maladie du Québec (RAMQ) - an estimated 220,000 - are among the 500,000 new patients. Most of the vulnerable patients are expected to be matched with a family doctor, while the remaining patients are set to be affiliated with a group of family doctors. They will, however, not be able to call their clinic directly to make an appointment. Instead, they will have to continue using the guichet d’accès à la première ligne (GAP) for patients without a doctor. “As we speak, there are 556,473 additional people who now have access to a family doctor or a group of family doctors,” Bélanger said. “The goal was ambitious — 500,000 patients, including 180,000 vulnerable individuals — but this morning we can say ‘mission accomplished,’” added FMOQ President Dr. Marc-André Amyot. Doubts remain At a press briefing on Wednesday, Quebec Liberal Party (PLQ) House Leader André Fortin expressed doubt that the registrations — mostly group sign-ups — would allow patients to gain better access to care. “It was clear that doctors would register 500,000 patients to get the additional money the government is giving them,” he stated. “Will patients receive more services? ... Will there be more appointments available? Will it be easier to see a doctor?” Guillaume Cliche-Rivard, an MNA for Québec solidaire, laments that “you still have to call GAP to get an appointment, and then it’s not even certain that you’ll be sent to the clinic where you’re registered.” He said he struggles to understand why doctors are receiving their $75 million incentive even before knowing if the results are conclusive. “The cheque is already in the mail. Why not send it next year, after assessing how many of those 500,000 actually had appointments in the system?” he asked. “I know very few people who receive a bonus before they’ve even done the work.” “I don’t think there’s a single doctor who’ll have trouble paying for groceries if we withhold the bonus payment until we verify that the initiative was successfully completed and met the desired objectives,” said Joël Arseneau of the Parti Québécois. “True accountability, well, we’ll be able to verify that in the future,” he noted. This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on May 27, 2026.
