FREDERICTON — New Brunswick’s health ministry is making changes to its new virtual-care system after patients reported delays getting prescription renewals following a provider change at the end of June.
What went wrong
The province transferred its virtual-care contract to a private provider, Foundever, on June 30, replacing eVisitNB, a service that began during the pandemic. Health Minister John Dornan told media the volume of prescription renewal requests was far higher than the province expected because the previous provider did not share historical usage data.
That mismatch led to a situation in which some patients were required to book a virtual appointment through an already busy telehealth line to request a prescription refill, rather than being able to make a simple online renewal request.
Immediate fixes and next steps
- The government says it will allow patients to request prescription renewals online directly, bypassing a symptom-checker stage.
- Officials are reviewing how usage data was transferred and why prior volumes were not disclosed.
- Health Minister Dornan acknowledged the transition did not go as smoothly as promised but expressed continued confidence in Foundever's ability to serve New Brunswickers.
Those changes aim to reduce pressure on telehealth appointment lines and speed up access to medication for patients who rely on virtual care for routine renewals.
Practical impact for patients
Patients who use virtual care to manage chronic prescriptions may experience shorter wait times once the direct online renewal option is in place. The ministry has not published a detailed timeline for all fixes but says it is addressing the specific renewal workflow that produced the most complaints.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Previous provider | eVisitNB |
| New provider | Foundever |
| Switch date | June 30 |
| Main issue reported | Patients forced to book virtual appointments to renew prescriptions; missing usage data |
The ministry’s acknowledgement underlines the difficulty of transferring digital health services between private vendors without complete operational data. For now, patients who need prescription renewals should check the Virtual Care NB website for updates and be prepared for possible short waits on telehealth lines until the online renewal path is fully operational.
The Canadian Press first reported the development on July 15, 2026.
