Quebec anglophones have right to health services in English, updated directive says

MONTREAL — The Quebec government has clarified that anglophones have the right to receive health and social services in English in a new directive meant to allay concerns the province was trying to restrict access to health care in languages other than French.

The five-page document, published Monday, states that recent changes to Quebec’s Charter of the French language do not affect the right of anglophones to receive health care in English. It also states multiple times that English-speakers do not have to prove their identity to receive care in their language.

The new directive replaces a previous version, published in July, that angered members of Quebec’s anglophone community who worried it could restrict their access to health care in English. Several Liberal MPs from the Montreal area also voiced concerns about the document.

The original directive was “preposterous and offensive and worrisome, and we’re glad to see it go,” Ingrid Kovitch, chair of the patients’ committee at Montreal’s McGill University Health Centre, said in an interview Monday. “People were really, really concerned about their ability to communicate effectively at times of great need.”

The Coalition Avenir Québec government has always maintained it did not intend to limit services in languages other than French, a message repeated Monday by Health Minister Christian Dubé.

“The changes to the directive are simply intended to ensure that its text reflects the government’s intentions and that it is simpler to understand for our employees and the public,” he said on X. “We will treat you, regardless of your language.”

Liberal MP Anthony Housefather, who spoke out against the original directive, says the issue is now “largely resolved.”

“Basically it says that there’s nothing that changes in the law,” he said of the new document. “It reflects the right of English-speaking Quebecers to receive services in their own language.”

The original 23-page directive came in response to Bill 96, the contentious 2022 law that updated the province’s French language charter. The bill requires that government agencies communicate with the public in French, except in certain situations. The directive was meant to clarify when health-care providers could offer services in languages other than French — Quebec’s sole official language.

Quebec Premier François Legault had insisted that access to health care would not be affected by Bill 96. However, the directive seemed to suggest that English could only be used in exceptional circumstances. A list of examples included one in which a 10-year-old boy required emergency medical care. In that case, according to the directive, health-care professionals were allowed to ask for his anglophone father’s consent in English.

The directive also stipulated that members of Quebec’s historic anglophone community must provide a certificate proving their eligibility to attend English school in the province if they wanted to receive all medical services exclusively in English. The government promised last month to revise the directive following a barrage of criticism, and said the document was meant to apply to administrative communication, not all forms of care.

Kovitch said it was “disingenuous” of the government to claim the original directive was not aimed at patient care. “The government said one thing, but they certainly wrote something else and those two things did not align in any way and nobody was fooled,” she said.

“I think the outcry regarding this was fully justified.”

The new document is much shorter, and doesn’t include a list of examples illustrating when English can be spoken, nor does it mention any certificate of eligibility. It says Bill 96 has had no impact on health and social services offered in English in Quebec. Patients can still receive oral and written communication in English at designated bilingual institutions, such as the McGill health centre.

At other facilities, a language other than French can be used when a patient requests it or when a health-care provider deems that a patient doesn’t understand the language, according to the new directive. Written communication can be provided in a language other than French as long as a French version is included.

“I think it’s a reassurance after all the confusion and fear that was raised by this original document,” said Eva Ludvig, president of the Quebec Community Groups Network, which advocates for Quebec anglophones. “English-speaking Quebecers spoke up, and spoke up quite loud, and did not give in. And I think it’s a good sign that we were able to effect change.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 23, 2024.

Maura Forrest, The Canadian Press