OMA executive committee resigns after vote of non-confidence from members

TORONTO – The executive committee of the Ontario Medical Association has resigned after a vote of non-confidence, though they’re remaining on the board of directors.

At a recent OMA meeting, delegates voted not to remove the individual executive committee members but expressed a lack of confidence in their leadership.

A week later, the OMA says the executive committee decided it was in the best interest of the association to resign “effective immediately” though they’re staying on the board because “they have a wealth of experience and knowledge.”

The board of directors elects the executive committee, which carries out the work of the board on a day-to-day basis, so a spokeswoman says there will likely be no impact on operations.

The OMA has been engaged in a lengthy dispute with the province and various groups of doctors have formed to express dissatisfaction with the OMA’s representation in negotiations.

The association has been threatening unspecified job action as the government refuses to accept their term of binding arbitration as a pre-condition to negotiations.

“The board believes that the OMA can now refocus on mounting a strong and united front against a government that is intransigent in its approach to health care and disrespectful of physicians and the role we need to play in health care reform,” the OMA said Monday in a release.

“The executive committee is making this choice in the hope that this will help unify doctors and advance the interests of the profession at this critical juncture,” it said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "The executive committee is making this choice in the hope that this will help unify doctors and advance the interests of the profession at this critical juncture," it said.

In December, the association dismissed as “unreasonable” a government proposal that would see fee cuts for high-billing specialists and more money for family physicians.

Under the Liberal plan, the approximately 500 doctors who bill over $1 million would see fee cuts, while those savings would go toward an increase for family physicians.

The government is also proposing to fully review all 7,000 fee codes, as technological advances have made some procedures and tests easier and less time-consuming.

The OMA called the proposal a rehash of the tentative agreement that physicians roundly rejected in the summer.