Impaired Driving and Bodily Fluid Samples: What Hospitals and Healthcare Providers Should Know

In anticipation of the recent decriminalization of recreational cannabis use by adults, the federal government introduced legislative changes to address impaired driving offences. The new laws increase police power to demand bodily fluid samples for the purpose of detecting the presence of alcohol and drugs in drivers. From a hospital’s perspective, these changes are significant as frontline staff may see increased demands (and presence) by police for blood samples.

The changes arise as a result of Bill C-46, which received Royal Assent on June 21, 2018 and amends sections of the Criminal Code. Police are permitted to demand breath, oral fluid, and urine samples from drivers. Hospital staff will not generally be involved in the procurement of these samples as they will be taken at the roadside or police station. When police are obtaining a blood sample on consent, however, a physician or “qualified technician” — currently only a nurse — is necessary to gather the sample and provide a certificate to confirm that “they took the sample and before the sample was taken they were of the opinion that taking it would not endanger the [driver’s] life or health.”