Medical specialists told to work

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32430, 17 October 1970, Page 17

Medical specialists told to work

(N.Z.P.A.-Reuter— Copyright) QUEBEC, Oct 16. The Quebec Government last night ordered the province’s 4000 striking medical specialists to resume operating full health services or risk fines and up to a year in gaoL Legislation to break the walk-out which began last Friday, was tabled at a special meeting of the Quebec National Assembly. It included bills to put a modified version of the province s controversial medical care insurance plan into effect on November 1.

The specialists withdrew from all but emergency services to demonstrate their opposition to the medical care plan. They have demanded the right to opt out of the scheme but still collect payments for their services from the Government. The Administration of the Premier, Mr Robert Bourassa, Called on the specialists to resume normal working for one month to November 15 and urged professional bodies to

induce their members to obey.

Penalties under the bill are fines of up to $5OO and one month’s imprisonment for each day a specialist refuses to maintain normal practice.

Fines of up to $50,000 may be imposed on the specialists’ professional associations and each of their officers who refuse to obey the legislation, and association officers might be imprisoned for 12 months. The Extremist Front for the Liberation of Quebec, which is holding the British diplomat, Mr James Cross, and the Quebec Labour Minister, Mr Pierre Laporte, hostage, has also threatened to kidnap striking specialists. One cell of the front this week warned that if the specialists had not returned to work by a specified time, “one of the pigs will share our company for an indefinite period of time.” The cell criticised what it called the criminal attitude of the specialists and the laziness of the Government in their medical care dispute. There has been no report of a specialist being kidnapped.