In the meantime, it is expected that provinces will develop similar legislation, which would likely take precedence over Bill C-6. The Bill requires, among other things, that companies obtain the informed consent of individuals to the collection, use and disclosure of their personal information, except in specific instances. The Bill says that this consent should be explicit in the case of personal health information, given the fundamentally private nature of it and the potentially prejudicial uses to which it can be put. Consent need not be obtained at the time of each and every transaction. As long as the individual has been properly informed of the purposes and has consented to them, the consent to those purposes is valid until it is withdrawn.
Health information is among the most sensitive information about individuals.
It deserves at least as much protection as other types of information. Bill C-6 provides baseline protection for health information. Health-specific legislation is also needed to address the special sensitivity of medical records and to achieve the goal of effective health care. Second, it is unlikely that all ten provinces will legislate to protect health information privacy - yet all Canadians deserve to be protected. Third, the track record of those provinces that have tried to legislate in this area does not bode well for privacy.