Articles 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted the regulation of health professionals in Ontario. On October 7, 2020 the OBA’s Health Law Section hosted a timely webinar where we heard from both the regulators and the defence counsels’ perspectives. This article discusses some of the highlights and take-away points of the program.

The resulting effect of Bill 138, the Plan to Build Ontario Together Act, on the province’s healthcare regime has already been interpreted by the Ontario Superior Court in a recent decision, shedding light on the practical implications of some of these amendments and how they may impact ongoing disputes related to a physician’s billings. The case of 1582235 Ontario Limited v Ontario, 2020 ONSC 1279, addresses issues on the current OHIP billing process.

On March 26, 2020, the Health Law and Elder Law Sections of the OBA hosted a joint priority professional development program on emergency management, delivering virtual and in-person care, and the lessons learned from SARS. Carina Lentsch provides a summary of this program.

On April 1, the Privacy and Access to Information Law Section hosted a webinar to discuss exceptions to the consent requirements for handling personal information and personal health information in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

On February 4, 2020, the OBA Health Law Section collaborated with the Constitutional, Civil Liberties and Human Rights Law Section in hosting “Key Constitutional and Human Rights in Health Law & Practice” at the OBA Institute. This article recaps some of the highlights of the event.

Awareness and recognition of multi-parent families is growing, and in 2016 Canada took steps to recognize multi-parent families by enacting the All Families Are Equal Act ("EFCA"). The formal recognition of multi-parent families introduces with it various challenges and considerations for health care providers.