Privacy policy

We are committed to protecting the personal information we hold. As a public organization, we are subject to the Act respecting access to documents held by public bodies and the protection of personal information and the Health Insurance Act. The latter contains more restrictive privacy provisions, in that it specifies what disclosure of information is permitted. We apply measures to ensure the protection of your personal information, in particular in the operation of our websites and certain online services, as well as in our day-to-day operational activities.

Websites covered by the privacy policy

RAMQ website: This website contains information on our services and programs, which are aimed primarily at the general public and various healthcare professionals. It also includes a number of online services for these clienteles, including web forms.
Québec Family Doctor Finder (GAMF): This website is for persons who want to find a family doctor.
Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler (RVSQ): This website allows you to make an appointment online with a family doctor. When you use this service, you must accept the terms of use.

Collection and use of personal information

In order to serve you, we need to collect, use, process, communicate and retain your personal information. This information may be collected from you or from an intermediary, such as a healthcare professional or other public organization. We take all necessary measures to protect this information in keeping with the law.

Information collected

The information we collect differs according to our clienteles. We collect only the personal information we need to carry out our mission.

Insured persons

Identity information (first and last names, postal address, date of birth, sex, telephone number, social security number, health insurance number, family relationships, for example)
Health information (insured medical services, insured pharmaceutical services, technical aids provided, location where an insured service is provided, name of prescription drug, for example)

Health professionals and service providers

Employment information (first and last names, social insurance number, healthcare professional number, area of specialization, methods of remuneration, date of registration with RAMQ, address of professional practice, date on which the permit or diploma was obtained, for example)
Financial information (information concerning the remuneration of the healthcare professional, billing, insured services rendered, location where the insured service was rendered, for example)

Purpose of the collection of information

We collect your personal information for the following purposes:

Identify you, while respecting the confidentiality of your information
Access your file and process your applications (eligibility, registration, file management, information processing, communication, remuneration, reimbursement, for example)
Comply with our legal and regulatory requirements
Analyze the satisfaction of our clienteles with the services and programs offered
Carry out studies and statistics (actuarial analyzes, projections, premium calculations, for example)

We may also use your information for other purposes with your consent or, where permitted by law, without your consent. Your refusal to provide certain personal information may delay the processing of your application or result in its rejection.

Methods of collection of your personal information

We may collect information by various means: directly from you, through an intermediary or by technological means, when you visit our websites.

Directly from you

Most of the personal information we collect is that which you provide to us directly. This is the case when you contact us by telephone or mail or when you use our websites to:

Complete a form
Make an application concerning your file, our services or our programs
Send comments or file a complaint

Through a third party

We may also collect your personal information through an intermediary such as a health professional, service provider or public organization.

Use of cookies

We use cookies to optimize your experience on our website. Cookies are small files that are stored on your computer. They are used to store information and facilitate your browsing. They do not allow you to be personally identified.

Some of these cookies are essential for the proper operation of our website, while others are used for statistical purposes and to improve our services. With the exception of those necessary for the proper operation of the website, you can decide what types of cookies you accept when you arrive on the website. You can also change your preferences at any time using the Cookie Settings menu at the bottom of the page.

Essential cookies (mandatory)

Some cookies are essential for organizing and displaying the pages of our website optimally according to your preferences. These essential cookies help to make a website usable and secure by enabling basic functions such as forms. The website cannot properly operate without these cookies. They are therefore mandatory.

Performance cookies

Performance cookies such as those from Google Analytics are used to identify problems and to gather information and statistics on usage patterns of our web content. This anonymous data is analyzed to improve the operation of our website.

Service improvement cookies

We use service improvement cookies such as those from the Hotjar application. They enable us to ask your opinion on the functions and content of our site. They are used to improve your browsing experience.

Automatic exchange of information

Whenever you access our website, information is exchanged automatically between your device and our server. The following information is exchanged:

The Internet domain name (“xyzcompany.com” if you use a personal Internet access account or “university.edu” if your access is through a university, for example)
IP address with which you access our website (that is, a number assigned automatically to your device by your Internet service provider)
Types of equipment and configuration used to access our website: browser (Internet Explorer or Google Chrome, for example) and operating system (Microsoft or iOS, for example), etc.
Date and time on which you access our website
Pages you visit
If you came to our site via another site, the address of that site

Links to other websites

In certain cases, we will temporarily redirect you to clicSÉQUR or the Government Authentication Service for authentication to access online government services. Our website also contains links to other websites. If you click on these links, you will leave the RAMQ website. The information exchanged is no longer subject to our privacy policy, but rather to that of the site visited.

Disclosure of your personal information to third parties

We disclose some of your personal information to third parties in accordance with the Act respecting access to documents held by public bodies and the protection of personal information, the Health Insurance Act and the Act respecting the Régie de l’assurance maladie du Québec. For example, we may transmit your personal information to a public organization to enable it to carry out its mission or implement a program it manages. We may also transmit your personal information to public authorities or to a company as part of the performance of a service contract. We also disclose some of your personal information to third parties for the purposes of studies, research and statistical production in the health field.

All these disclosures do not require your consent, as they are permitted by law and are carried out in a secure manner. To find out more, consult the Registre des communications de renseignements personnels sans le consentement de la personne concernée on the Information distribution webpage.

Protection of your personal information

We have put in place organizational, contractual, technological and physical security measures to adequately protect our information assets and your personal information against theft, loss, unauthorized access, unauthorized transfer, alteration and unauthorized use. These measures comply with the recommendations of the ministère de la Cybersécurité et du Numérique. They ensure the confidentiality and integrity of data exchanged between your computer equipment and our servers.

All personal information stored on our computer systems is secure. It is accessible only to our employees who are duly authorized to consult it and for whom knowledge of this information is necessary for the performance of their duties. Our employees are bound by confidentiality undertakings. They also receive regular training on information security, the protection of personal information and ethics.

Your rights regarding your personal information

You are entitled to the following rights regarding the personal information we have collected. If you wish to exercise these rights or ask a question about the privacy policy, you must contact the person in charge of access to documents and the protection of personal information. You will find their contact information and the procedure to follow on the How to file an access to information request webpage.

Access and request the correction of your personal information

We undertake to maintain the accuracy of your personal information and ensure that it is complete and up to date. You may request a copy of your personal information or request that inaccuracies be corrected.

If you are a health professional, you may use the Mon dossier online service or the appropriate form to request correction of your personal file.

Withdraw your consent

You may withdraw your consent to the use of your personal information for purposes that are not essential to the management and administration of our services. Any withdrawal of consent must be communicated in writing to the person in charge of access to documents and the protection of personal information.

File a complaint

Any questions or complaints regarding the processing of your personal information must be sent in writing to the person in charge of access to documents and the protection of personal information.

No personal information regarding identity, such as date of birth, health insurance number or social insurance number, should be sent by unsecured email.

Retention and destruction of your personal information

The personal information we collect must not be kept beyond what is necessary to achieve the purposes for which it was collected, as prescribed in the retention schedule approved by Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec. We also ensure that it is destroyed in a secure and confidential manner.

Update of the privacy policy

Our privacy policy may be amended from time to time to maintain compliance with the law and to reflect any changes in the process of collecting personal information. Prior notice will be given of any changes to the policy, specifying the general purpose of the changes and the effective date of such changes.