Alberta moves to allow private diagnostic tests without a doctor’s referral

Albertans could soon pay out of pocket to get private diagnostic testing, without a doctor’s referral.

Bill 29, if passed, would allow Albertans to self-refer to private clinics later this year. Primary and Preventative Health Services Minister Adriana LaGrange said it will free up the public system and help identify medical conditions early. 

“It’s about giving Albertans more control over their health while maintaining the strong public health-care system that we all rely on,” LaGrange said at a news conference Monday.

Details on criteria and which tests will be included will be revealed later this year. 

The changes had been mentioned in Premier Danielle Smith’s 2025 mandate letter to LaGrange and were previously announced in a government video last year. 

In that video, LaGrange said Albertans will be able to buy any diagnostic or screening test they want including MRIs, CT scans and full body scans.

LaGrange said the legislation would permit “lifestyle testing” done in countries like Japan and South Korea — citing bloodwork to check vitamin or hormone levels as an example.

But she said the government may take a phased approach, starting with one or two kinds of tests.

“Being the first in the country to do this, we want to be able to walk before we run.” 

“We’re looking to make sure that the public system is protected first and foremost, that we are able to deal with those referral tests that are already in the system and make sure that those are prioritized,” she said.

Last year’s announcement of self-referred tests prompted some doctors to warn about a shortage of skilled technologists, and a surge of unnecessary testing.

LaGrange said it’s about adding capacity to the system, not taking away.

“People are paying for these tests themselves, there will be a market, a private market, that will step in to meet that capacity demand.”

In last year’s video Smith said that if a private self-referred test reveals a significant or critical condition, the cost would be reimbursed. 

But at Monday’s news conference LaGrange said the government would be the “payer of last resort,” and private insurers would be billed first for those who have it.

The bill also would allow pharmacies to keep a limited supply of addiction treatment medications, designed to improve access in rural and Indigenous communities. 

It would only apply to a limited list of low risk opioid agonist drugs.

Currently, pharmacists can only dispense these drugs with a prescription for a named patient, which the government said can lead to delays in timely treatment in some parts of the province.