Calgary police are fighting for a bill that would allow for full disclosure between emergency responders and police officers, but the province's privacy commissioner says the legislation is not necessary.
Police Chief Rick Hansen says that since the province took over Alberta's ambulance services in April, information has not being fully exchanged between emergency responders and police. Some paramedics refuse to give any information, he said.
"It should get back to the common-sense way that it was for so many years before."
If passed, the Emergency Health Services Amendment Act, would allow emergency responders to give police an individual's personal and medical information without need for consent.
"We're talking about basic information that relates to what just happened, who is that person right there and what can you tell me right now at this scene that's going to give us a good sense of what happened at this event."— Rick Hansen, chief of police
Hansen said there have been at least 25 incidents across Alberta where police were not told of serious crimes when they arrived at the scene.
In one case, a teenager, who had been drinking, alleged she had been sexually assaulted but the information was not passed to police by emergency workers.
"We're not talking about having access to people's medical records," Hansen said. "We're talking about basic information that relates to what just happened, who is that person right there and what can you tell me right now at this scene that's going to give us a good sense of what happened at this event."
But Frank Work, Alberta's privacy commissioner, said in a news release Friday that if the bill passes, it will call into question whether ambulance attendants should be "treating victims or gathering evidence for police."
The privacy commissioner is also concerned the legislation would override provisions preventing people from complaining to his office about information that's been disclosed to police.
Wayne Wood, spokesperson for the commissioner's office, said ambulance workers are already allowed to disclose information to police, so the new bill is unnecessary.
"We feel this is unnecessary legislation because there are provisions both in the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act and the Health Information Act which allow ambulance attendants to share information with police at the scene of a crime or the scene of an accident," Wood said.
Wood said attendants who don't reveal information are just misinformed.
The government bill has not yet been given second reading.
