Bill 11: Allowing mixed practice in Alberta could help improve access to healthcare, new MEI research shows

Montreal, February 17, 2026 — The Government of Alberta’s Bill 11, allowing physicians to practise in both public and private care settings, could help improve access to healthcare by increasing the province’s overall treatment capacity, according to a newly released Economic Note from the MEI.

“While Alberta’s Bill 11 represents a novel approach by Canadian standards, mixed practice is the norm in other developed nations and has been shown to help increase overall treatment capacity,” says Conrad Eder, Associate Researcher at the MEI and author of the publication. “This means more patients getting the care they need in a timely manner, and less pressure on the province’s overburdened clinics and hospitals.”

Canada’s health systems collectively rank seventh out of ten peer countries for their performance, according to data compiled by the Commonwealth Fund, behind Australia, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, France, and Sweden.

Of those six other countries, none have a prohibition on mixed practice.

The author credits part of the success of mixed practice to its effect in expanding total physician working hours.

“With mixed practice, we see that physicians tend to add a few extra hours of operating room or clinical consultation time per week in private clinics, on top of their regular commitments in the public system,” explains Eder. “Across an entire province for an entire year, these extra hours of practice add up to a massive benefit for patients.”

Research conducted in Denmark shows no statistically significant difference in the number of both regular and overtime hours worked in public facilities by physicians engaged in mixed practice compared to those in public-only practice.

Those in mixed practice, however, worked an additional 5.2 hours a week on average in private care settings.

Similarly, research conducted in Norway found no statistically significant difference in time spent working in public facilities between physicians in public-only practice and those in mixed practice.

The researcher also points to system-wide benefits such as stronger physician retention and better resource utilization that can result from allowing mixed practice.

In order for Alberta to maximize the benefits it gets from this policy, the researcher cautions the province not to take an overly restrictive approach to regulating the practice.

“Just how beneficial Bill 11 will be for Alberta’s health system depends on the regulations that will govern its implementation,” emphasizes Eder. “Allowing mixed practice across a wide range of physician types and specialties, for instance, as opposed to limiting it only to certain specialties, would enable Albertans with a broader range of healthcare needs to benefit from increased treatment capacity.”

You can consult the MEI’s Economic Note here.

* * *

The MEI is an independent public policy think tank with offices in Montreal, Ottawa, and Calgary. Through its publications, media appearances, and advisory services to policymakers, the MEI stimulates public policy debate and reforms based on sound economics and entrepreneurship.

— 30 —

Interview requests
Florence Plourde
Manager, Communications
Cell: 418-670-5939