Rural Physician Recruitment and Retention Support Program (PRRSP)

The rural Physician Recruitment and Retention Support Program (PRRSP) is a temporary program, funded by Alberta Health, which provides eligible physicians with financial support to continue practicing in underserved rural communities in Alberta.

Note:  To ensure that you receive timely payments from programs you are eligible for, you will need to sign up for direct deposit. This can be done through your AMA Member Dashboard (login required) or by contacting AMA membership services at [email protected].

Eligibility requirements

Eligible physicians who met the following requirements in the April 1, 2022 - March 31, 2023 or April 1, 2023 - March 31, 2024 fiscal years are eligible to receive funding through the PRRSP:

• Must have practiced in an eligible rural community in Alberta. Note: Physicians who practiced in Edmonton, Calgary, Airdrie, Devon, Leduc, Sherwood Park and St. Albert are not eligible. 
• Must be entitled to receive payment of benefits under the Alberta Health Care Insurance Plan (AHCIP). 
• Must have provided insured medical services for which benefits were payable and/or other publicly funded, medically required services. This includes public health services paid by Alberta Health Services. 
• Must have provided insured medical services on at least 100 days during either the April 1, 2022 - March 31, 2023 or April 1, 2023 - March 31, 2024 fiscal year (or both).
• Must have practiced at least one day in the first 90 days of the subsequent year. 
  • A physician is still eligible if they did not meet this requirement due to one or more of the following reasons: 
    • Parental leave
    • Retirement from practice 
    • Disability leave 
• Must be a regulated member of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta (CPSA) and hold a valid practice permit at time of payment. 
• Must be a member of the Alberta Medical Association (AMA) or have paid a non-member administration fee to the AMA.

Physicians must notify the AMA if they no longer meet the eligibility criteria. The AMA will require physicians to return funding if a physician is no longer eligible or unable to comply with the program payment conditions.

Physicians with a provisional postgraduate training license through CPSA are not eligible, unless the postgraduate trainee is registered as a physician extender.

Payment conditions and amounts

Alberta Health sets out the conditions for payment. An Eligibility Status Form may be required to be signed by some physicians to receive payment.

The PRRSP Eligibility Status Form is an agreement in which physicians: 

• Declare they meet the eligibility criteria. 
• Agree they have practiced for at least 100 days in either April 1, 2022 - March 31, 2023 or April 1, 2023 - March 31, 2024 fiscal years. 
• Agree to notify the AMA if they are no longer eligible for the program. 
• Agree to return the entire program payment to the AMA if they no longer meet all of the eligibility criteria.

Physicians will receive funding as follows:

Action required to receive payment

Members: Visit the PRRSP widget on your AMA member dashboard (member login required) to confirm your banking information for electronic funds transfer (EFT). Please note these payments will be made via electronic funds transfer ONLY and banking information is mandatory.

Note: If the PRRSP widget displays $0 on your member dashboard, you may not be eligible for one or both years of the program. If you believe you ARE eligible, please click the Eligibility Status Form link to review and declare yourself eligible. If you declare that you are eligible, please allow 2-3 weeks for your eligibility to be reviewed and payment to be processed.

Non-Members: To be eligible for the PRRSP, a physician must be a member of the AMA or pay the non-member administration fee equal to a full AMA membership fee.

If you would like to become a member or pay the non-member fee, please email [email protected].

Questions?

If you have questions or require assistance, please reach out to [email protected].