Canada
CMA calls for elimination of sick note requirements by employers
The Canadian Medical Association wants to eliminate sick note requirements by companies for employees with short-term minor illnesses.
The association says this could prevent as many as 12.5 million unnecessary health-care interactions in a single year.
CMA president Dr. Joss Reimer says sick notes are not a health systems issue, but rather a human resources issue.
The association says sick notes burden physicians with unnecessary administrative tasks and detract from patient care.
In a new position paper, the CMA calls for legislative changes to restrict the requirement for sick notes and promote alternatives such as self-certification and flexible leave policies.
It says the move aims to ease the administrative burden on health-care providers and improve patients’ access to care and the overall efficiency of the health-care system.