Catherine Allison

HEALTH DATA INTEROPERBILITY: Provide CMA’s perspective as it relates to health data interoperability that would ensure providers have access to the right information at the right time when providing care, and improve patient outcomes and their health care experience. BUDGET: Provide CMA’s perspective on the Government of Canada’s budget, particularly as it relates to modernizing Canada’s health care system by enhancing efficiency, driving innovation, and promoting equitable access to care. HARMFUL ONLINE CONTENT: Advocate to address the escalation of online harassment, intimidation, and threats of violence targeting physicians, other health workers, and anyone seeking health care treatment, including measures to strengthen the Criminal Code of Canada and the Canadian Human Rights Act. TECHNOLOGY AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: provide CMA’s perspective on the impact of technology and artificial intelligence on the health care sector and the means through which advancements can be foreseen and managed. HEALTH PROMOTION AND DISEASE PREVENTION: Increased investments in health and social-determinants-of-health related programs, including measures to address the opioid crisis, mental health and addictions, and the regulation of natural health products. ADMINISTRATIVE BURDEN: Advocate for measures to alleviate the administrative burden on physicians and support their professional wellbeing, including investment to facilitate the development of EHRs and EMRs in Canada, improved remuneration for the completion of federal health forms, the development of a Federal Disability Benefit, ensuring that physicians are not captured in the definition of "promoters" in the Disability Tax Credit Promoters Restrictions Regulations, providing clarity and guidance on federal forms, and advocacy on discontinuing the requirement that employees present sick notes to their employers. The CMA is advocating that the trade of medical goods and medications be protected to avoid disruptions to patient care. Specifically, that the government: Continue to ensure pharmaceutical products and medical devices are not included in any countermeasures on tariffs. Improve safeguards for Canadian health data. Improve labour mobility so physicians can work across the country. Make it easier for qualified physicians to immigrate and work in Canada, including by fast-tracking immigration steps for US physicians. PAN CANADIAN LICENSURE: Advocate for the ability for physicians with full licences to practise independently without restrictions or for medical resident trainees registered in any Canadian jurisdiction to practise or train in any other Canadian jurisdiction without having to acquire more than one licence or pay additional licensing fees. This includes exploring enabling legislation in the provinces and territories. INTEGRATED HEALTH HUMAN RESOURCES Advocate for an Integrated Health Human Resources Strategy, including creating retention incentives and addressing administrative burden for health care professionals, increasing the number of doctors and nurses and ensuring that every Canadian has access to a family doctor or primary health team, increasing access to virtual care, creating an action plan to get internationally trained health care professionals to work, improving workforce data collection across health systems and investing in a supply needs-based planning tool, and facilitating team-based health care. MEDICAL MIS/DISINFORMATION: Provide CMA’s perspective on the impacts of medical misinformation and disinformation, including on public trust in science, medicine, and public health experts. INDIGENOUS HEALTH: Improvement to the health and health care services provided to Indigenous peoples in Canada including adding inclusive lettering on health cards across Canada. Advocating for the creation of a national Chief Health Accountability Officer. PUBLIC-PRIVATE HEALTHCARE: The CMA is conducting a series of in-person sessions across the country to engage key s

BUDGET: Provide CMA’s perspective on the Government of Canada’s budget, particularly as it relates to modernizing Canada’s health care system by enhancing efficiency, driving innovation, and promoting equitable access to care. HARMFUL ONLINE CONTENT: Advocate to address the escalation of online harassment, intimidation, and threats of violence targeting physicians, other health workers, and anyone seeking health care treatment, including measures to strengthen the Criminal Code of Canada and the Canadian Human Rights Act. TECHNOLOGY AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: provide CMA’s perspective on the impact of technology and artificial intelligence on the health care sector and the means through which advancements can be foreseen and managed. HEALTH DATA INTEROPERBILITY: Provide CMA’s perspective as it relates to health data interoperability that would ensure providers have access to the right information at the right time when providing care, and improve patient outcomes and their health care experience. The CMA is advocating that the trade of medical goods and medications be protected to avoid disruptions to patient care. Specifically, that the government: Continue to ensure pharmaceutical products and medical devices are not included in any countermeasures on tariffs. Improve safeguards for Canadian health data. Improve labour mobility so physicians can work across the country. Make it easier for qualified physicians to immigrate and work in Canada, including by fast-tracking immigration steps for US physicians. MEDICAL MIS/DISINFORMATION: Provide CMA’s perspective on the impacts of medical misinformation and disinformation, including on public trust in science, medicine, and public health experts. PAN CANADIAN LICENSURE: Advocate for the ability for physicians with full licences to practise independently without restrictions or for medical resident trainees registered in any Canadian jurisdiction to practise or train in any other Canadian jurisdiction without having to acquire more than one licence or pay additional licensing fees. This includes exploring enabling legislation in the provinces and territories. INTEGRATED HEALTH HUMAN RESOURCES: Advocate for an Integrated Health Human Resources Strategy, including creating retention incentives and addressing administrative burden for health care professionals, increasing the number of doctors and nurses and ensuring that every Canadian has access to a family doctor or primary health team, increasing access to virtual care, creating an action plan to get internationally trained health care professionals to work, improving workforce data collection across health systems and investing in a supply needs-based planning tool, and facilitating team-based health care. ADMINISTRATIVE BURDEN: Advocate for measures to alleviate the administrative burden on physicians and support their professional wellbeing, including investment to facilitate the development of EHRs and EMRs in Canada, improved remuneration for the completion of federal health forms, ensuring that physicians are not captured in the definition of "promoters" in the Disability Tax Credit Promoters Restrictions Regulations, and advocacy on discontinuing the requirement that employees present sick notes to their employers. INDIGENOUS HEALTH: Improvement to the health and health care services provided to Indigenous peoples in Canada, including adding inclusive lettering on health cards across Canada. Advocating for the creation of a national Chief Health Accountability Officer. PUBLIC-PRIVATE HEALTHCARE: The CMA is conducting a series of in-person sessions across the country to engage key stakeholders, including the public, physicians, patients/PWLE, policymakers, system leaders and others, in a dialogue on public-private healthcare. What we hear will inform CMA policy moving forward, and our recommendations for action at a national level. PHYSICIAN PARLIAMENTARIAN CAUCUS: advocate for the formation of a Physician Parliamentarian

Communicating with government officials about the proposed Safe Social Media Act (Bill C-34) as it relates to reducing the harms to children and their access to online content. Communicating with government officials about artificial intelligence (AI), including about (i) the potential regulation of AI by government, (ii) potential uses for AI in government, (iii) investments in AI by government, including via the AI Compute Access Fund, (iv) technological developments related to AI, (v) the promotion of AI literacy, training and skills development and (vi) the development, implementation and amendment of AI policies, including but not limited to the “Canadian Guardrails for Generative AI – Code of Practice”, the “Voluntary Code of Conduct on the Responsible Development and Management of Advanced Generative AI Systems” and the “Canadian AI Sovereign Compute Strategy. Communicating with government officials about the Online Harms Act (formerly Bill C-63), more specifically about the regulation of online content. Communicating with government officials about the Digital Charter Implementation Act, 2022 (formerly Bill C-27), more specifically the creation of the Consumer Privacy Protection Act, the Personal Information and Data Protection Tribunal Act, and the Artificial Intelligence and Data Act. Communicating with government officials about the proposed Supporting Authorized Access to Information Act (Bill C-22) as it relates to the timely production of data and information. Communicating with government officials about the proposed Protecting Victims Act (Bill C-16) as it relates to youth safety online. Communicating with government officials, in general, about opportunities and challenges facing the creator economy, including as it relates to skills training, content creation and economic conditions. Communicating with government officials about the design and implementation of the National Anti-Fraud Strategy (announced in November 2025). Communicating with government officials about Bill S-209 (“An Act to restrict young persons’ online access to pornographic material”), including as it relates to the enactment of the Protecting Young Persons from Exposure to Pornography Act. Communicating with government officials about Bill C-8 (“An Act respecting cyber security, amending the Telecommunications Act and making consequential amendments to other Acts”), including as it relates to the amendment of the Telecommunications Act, S.C. 1993, c. 38, and the enactment of Critical Cyber Systems Protection Act. Communicating with government officials about industry and government efforts to promote online safety including but not limited to (i) combatting misinformation and disinformation, (ii) ensuring child safety, (iii) reducing online scams and fraudulent activity, (iv) minimizing online spam and (v) removing harmful online content. Communicating with government officials about proposed and existing youth privacy and age assurance measures, including the potential establishment of a youth privacy code. These communications may touch on, but are not limited to, the consultation launched by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada. Communicating with government officials about existing and proposed credit counselling regulations under the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada Act, S.C. 2001, c. 9 and the Bank Act, S.C. 1991, c. 46. Communicating with government officials, in general, about digital sovereignty. Communicating with government officials about "An Act to restrict young persons’ online access to sexually explicit material" (formerly in Bill S-210). Communicating with government officials about "An Act to enact the Protection of Minors in the Digital Age Act and to amend the Criminal Code" (formerly Bill C-412), more specifically about the regulation of online content. Communicating with government officials about "An Act respecting the interoperability of health information technology and to prohibit data blocking by