Nova Scotia promises better care with revamped family doctor wait-list

Advertisement

Advertise with us

HALIFAX - The Nova Scotia government is revamping the way its family doctor wait-list works and says it will connect patients to a health-care provider more quickly. 

Read this article for free:

or

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Monthly Digital Subscription

$1 per week for 24 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*Billed as $4.00 plus GST every four weeks. After 24 weeks, price increases to the regular rate of $19.95 plus GST every four weeks. Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.

Monthly Digital Subscription

$4.99/week*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*Billed as $19.95 plus GST every four weeks. Cancel any time.

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional

$1 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles
Start now

No thanks

*Your next subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $16.99 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $23.99 plus GST every four weeks.

HALIFAX – The Nova Scotia government is revamping the way its family doctor wait-list works and says it will connect patients to a health-care provider more quickly. 

Health Minister Michelle Thompson says the old list was just a static collection of names that didn’t have much information about the patients or their health situations. 

Now when people join the list, health officials will speak with them about their needs, a change the government says will provide better and faster care. 

Nova Scotia's Minister of Health and Wellness Michelle Thompson speaks to reporters in Halifax on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darren Calabrese
Nova Scotia's Minister of Health and Wellness Michelle Thompson speaks to reporters in Halifax on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darren Calabrese

The government says 50,000 people in the last nine months tried to sign up because their family doctor was retiring, but they were quickly reassigned, eliminating the need to join the wait-list at all. 

There’s almost 66,000 Nova Scotians on the wait-list, down from more than 160,000 about 18 months ago. 

The Canadian Medical Association estimates there’s about 6.5 million people in the country without a family doctor or nurse practitioner. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 26, 2026.

Report Error Submit a Tip