November 24, 2025
RED FM News Desk
The Alberta government has introduced Bill 11, the Health Statutes Amendment Act, a wide-ranging proposal to update the province’s health system that includes a contentious measure permitting doctors to work in both the public and private sectors.
Before the bill was tabled Monday, Primary and Preventative Health Services Minister Adriana LaGrange said the reforms are aimed at giving Albertans more options, improving access to services, and cutting surgical wait times.
“Albertans will continue to receive care through a strong public health system,” LaGrange said, “but they will also have the ability to pay for procedures they’re currently waiting on, including hip, knee, and cataract surgeries.”
Premier Danielle Smith outlined aspects of the bill last week, describing it as a way to give physicians greater flexibility while reducing backlogs for publicly funded surgeries.
Life-saving and emergency procedures, including cancer care, would remain fully covered. Doctors working in both systems would have to keep separate records to prevent public funds from supporting private operations.
LaGrange stressed the government is not shifting toward a U.S. model, noting that similar approaches already exist in Quebec, New Brunswick, and several European countries.
“We’re not moving toward American, we’re moving toward European-style health care,” she said, citing Denmark, the Netherlands, the U.K., France, and Germany as examples where elective surgeries are completed in weeks rather than years.
Under Bill 11, Albertans would still never pay to visit a family doctor but could choose to pay for services at private clinics offering extended hours on evenings and weekends. LaGrange said safeguards would be built in to protect the public system.
Surgical Services Minister Matt Jones said the legislation is designed to attract more physicians to Alberta and help retain existing staff, pushing back against critics who say it will drain workers from the public sector.
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