The Medicus Pension Plan, a defined benefit multi-employer pension plan designed exclusively for incorporated physicians in Canada, reported a funded status of 158 per cent on a going-concern basis and a 115 per cent funded status on a solvency basis as of Jan. 1, 2024.
The plan, which launched in May 2023, is designed to serve physicians since most of them aren’t employees of the province or a large health-care establishment, says Simone Reitzes, its managing director.
“When we first set out on our journey, one of the stakes in the ground . . . was to be a truly national pension plan so that physicians in all provinces and territories would have access to that same secure income for themselves and their families.”
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A report detailing the plan’s first year of operations noted that it’s targeting an asset mix of 70 per cent public equities and 30 per cent fixed income. Plan members range in age from age 30 to 65 and older and the average contribution to the plan was $28,760. The plan also offers pension buybacks to members.
Among the provinces in which Medicus currently operates, Ontario (46 per cent) represented the largest segment of plan members, followed by British Columbia (28 per cent), Alberta (18 per cent) and Atlantic Canada (eight per cent), represented by Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia.
“Medicus really has the opportunity to complement a wide range of retirement planning strategies to contribute to a financially secure future,” she adds. “It’s that safety net that can complement whatever other strategies, physicians have in place.”