Man. task force will design action plan to reduce physicians’ paperwork

The province and Doctors Manitoba will create a joint task force to identify unnecessary burdens on doctors and come up with solutions so they can focus on their patients. The task force includes physicians, a representatives from the provincial health department or from within the health system and a CFIB member with experience dealing with red-tape reduction. Manitoba doctors spend 591,000 hours per year on unnecessary paperwork and administrative tasks, the equivalent of 1.8 million patient visits annually. Man. is the first province to take up the CFIB's Red Tape Challenge to reduce red tape for physicians, following the lead of N.S. which pledged to cut the administrative burden by 10% by 2024. For its part, the Ont. government promises to phase out faxes in health over a five-year timeline.