N.L. has paid Teladoc $32.1M for virtual care since 2023

Newfoundland and Labrador’s provincial health authority had paid private company Teladoc about $32.1 million as of April 30 for virtual primary care and virtual physicians in emergency rooms and urgent care centres, a spokesperson told The Canadian Press.

Mikaela Etchegary of NL Health Services said in an emailed statement that Teladoc was operating in 10 emergency rooms and four urgent care centres across the province as of May, The Canadian Press reported on Oct. 21, 2026. CBC News also reported the figure.

The province announced the virtual care contract in November 2023. It was a two-year agreement worth $22 million, with plans for Teladoc to serve five emergency rooms and expand as needed. Etchegary said the contract has since been extended into this fall and officials are preparing a call for proposals from virtual care providers for a new deal.

The health authority said virtual emergency support has helped keep urgent and emergency care open in communities where physician shortages could otherwise affect services, and that it tries to arrange in-person coverage before using virtual coverage.

Dr. David Metcalfe, president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association, said in a statement that the expansion is a symptom of an unsolved doctor shortage and that the province must attract and keep more physicians. He said virtual care was never meant to replace a family doctor or become a permanent substitute for emergency care.

In St. Lawrence, on the Burin Peninsula, Mayor Kevin Pittman said the emergency room at the U.S. Memorial Health Centre is now closed and the virtually staffed urgent care clinic is the only option for quick medical help. He called it a stopgap in a community where more than 60 per cent of residents are seniors, and said the nearest emergency room is in Burin, about a 25-minute drive away.

Teladoc Health is based in New York City, and its Canadian arm has its headquarters in Toronto.

Other provinces are also turning to remote care as they struggle to staff emergency departments. Montreal’s Jewish General Hospital recently launched virtual emergency visits, and seven Nova Scotia emergency departments face closures this weekend.

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