How the CMA influences health care in Ottawa

Press Release

October 23, 2025

With the House of Commons back in full swing and a federal budget coming in November, the CMA is hard at work connecting with policy makers in Ottawa. While our relationship with the federal health minister is of critical importance, here’s an inside look at how the CMA cultivates relationships across portfolios and parties to support physicians and help drive solutions to build a stronger health system.

Six key connections CMA has made with the federal government
Minister of Health Marjorie Michel

The CMA is calling on the health minister to resurrect Connected Care legislation introduced in 2024 that would make it easier for physicians to share vital patient information and allow Canadians to securely access their own health data. We are also advocating for a coordinated, pan-Canadian integrated health human resource strategy to address staffing shortages in the profession and anticipate Canada’s long-term needs for health care.

Minister of Finance François-Philippe Champagne

The finance minister oversees a budget with critical health funding as well as other investments that directly impact Canadians’ health. Ahead of this year’s budget day, the CMA submitted recommendationsOpens in a new window and met with members of the Minister’s team. The CMA will have a team assembled at the budget lockup, ready to respond to the numbers as they are announced.

Minister of Indigenous Services Mandy Gull-Masty

We’re encouraging Minister Gull-Masty to re-table the Clean Water Act, which the CMA had advocated for before the government was prorogued last March. The Act includes minimum water and wastewater standards and First Nations governance over resources. The CMA is also calling on the government to establish measurable goals to close health gaps between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Peoples, eliminate tuberculosis by 2030 with Indigenous leadership, ensure timely access to children’s services and modernize the Non-Insured Health Benefits program.

Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Lena Metlege Diab

Earlier this year, the Liberal Party promised to “add thousands of new doctors” to address the access to care crisis across the country. The CMA has recommended that Minister Metlege Diab scale best practices in expediting licensing pathways for U.S.-trained physicians and reform the Labour Market Impact Assessment for health professionals.

Minister of Environment and Climate Change Julie Dabrusin

Canada is warming at twice the global rate and we know the harmful effects of extreme heat, wildfires and other climate shocks on Canadians’ health. The CMA is calling on Minister Dabrusin for funding and leadership — including meaningful engagement with Indigenous leaders — to build climate-resilient and environmentally sustainable health systems and to ensure emergency preparedness.

Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation Evan Solomon

The CMA is calling on Solomon to reduce physicians’ administrative burden with investments in digital health innovations and to advance a data privacy and protection regulatory framework on AI using well-established principles like the WHO’s Ethics and Governance of Artificial Intelligence for Health Opens in a new window. Given the instability in the U.S., the CMA has also urged the federal government to protect Canada’s digital sovereignty.

In addition to sitting ministers, the CMA works with shadow ministers and critics across parties. On health care right now: Conservative Shadow Minister for Health Dan Mazier, who is advocating for more internationally trained physicians to be licensed in Canada; Bloc Québécois Health Critic Luc Thériault, who continues to advocate for federal health care policies like allowing advance requests for medical assistance in dying; and NDP Health Critic Gord Johns, who has re-introduced the Mental Health Parity Act, a bill to include community-based mental health, addictions and substance use services under Medicare.

Getting results in policy changes

The CMA has been recognized by the Hill Times as one of the top health care advocates in Ottawa for three years in a row. Our calls for action have been reflected in landmark federal health funding, along with new accountability measures for spending. We have built momentum for greater physician mobility and are advancing solutions to increase access to care. Last year’s federal budget committed $243 million over six years to cover the costs of completing the medical forms needed for Disability Tax Credit applications, a promising step in streamlining the Canada Disability Benefit process for physicians.

In March 2025, a week after Prime Minister Mark Carney was sworn in, the federal government cancelled the proposed increase Opens in a new window to the capital gains inclusion rate — a move the CMA had been advocating for since changes were announced in the 2024 budget. The cancellation provides certainty for physicians who run their own clinics, particularly many family physicians, who would have faced undue pressure and financial strain.

We were also pleased to see an important clarification to the Canada Health Act in January 2025 recognizing that all medically necessary primary care services Opens in a new window should be publicly funded within a team-based approach.

Get involved with making change in Ottawa

Physicians, patients and the public can support the CMA’s calls for change. Sign up for regular updates on our advocacy, and details on how you can help make the health system and the profession better for everyone.

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