Yukon privacy commissioner discourages blood testing law
Last Updated: Thursday, February 19, 2009 | 7:03 PM ET
CBC News
Related
Internal Links
A proposed Yukon law that would make blood testing and disclosure mandatory in certain situations would violate the privacy of Yukoners, says the territory's privacy commissioner.
Tracy-Anne McPhee said Thursday the territorial government should not go ahead with its proposed mandatory testing and disclosure act until serious flaws in the draft legislation are fixed.
"Introducing a piece of legislation like that, in my view, could put the private health information of Yukoners at risk," McPhee told CBC News.
Under the legislation, a person could be forced to have their blood tested for HIV or other blood-borne diseases in some cases if their bodily fluids come into contact with an emergency worker or victim of crime.
The legislation could also allow a doctor to access a person's medical file to see whether that person has any blood-borne diseases.
Government officials introduced the act in December, at the urging of police, nurses, paramedics and other emergency workers.
Officials have said the act would also help victims of certain crimes, such as sexual assault.
But McPhee said it's essential for the Yukon's privacy commissioner to oversee how information from such blood testing would be handled.
If it's handled improperly, McPhee warned, people would need someone to advocate for them.
"My office operates independent of the government. And as a result, it's important for Yukoners to have a place to go where those decisions — if they don't agree with them — can be reviewed," she said.
An official in the Yukon's Justice Department said public comment on the proposed law is still being reviewed.
Share Tools
Top News Headlines
- Aylmer triple stabbing leads to first-degree murder charges

- The estranged partner of a young mother who was stabbed to death along with her parents at their home in Aylmer, Que., has been charged with first-degree murder Friday. more »
- Wildfires, high winds put northeastern Ontario on alert
- It's going to be a tense weekend in northeastern Ontario where strong, shifting winds have been fuelling a forest fire that has blanketed the Timmins area with smoke and ash. more »
- Labrador fire out of control
- A forest fire continues to burn out of control in Happy Valley-Goose Bay today, according to provincial firefighting officials. more »
- The risks and responsibilities of taking on Mt. Everest

- The deaths of five climbers last weekend on Mt. Everest, with more summits underway this weekend, fuels the debate about the risks and responsibilities of high altitude climbing. more »
Latest Technology & Science News Headlines
- Unloading of docked SpaceX capsule to start Saturday
- The privately bankrolled SpaceX Dragon capsule made a historic arrival at the International Space Station on Friday, and astronauts will begin unloading some of the 544 kilograms of food, water, clothing and other supplies its carrying starting Saturday.
more »
- South Africa, Australia to share world's largest telescope
- South Africa and Australia will jointly host the Square Kilometre Array, which promises to be the world's largest telescope, the international consortium in charge of the project said Friday. more »
- Bonavista, N.L., 'coyote' was really wolf, tests confirm
- Wolves have not been seen in Newfoundland since around 1930 and were believed to have been hunted to extinction on the island, but genetic tests have confirmed that an 82-pound animal shot on the Bonavista Peninsula in March was, in fact, a wolf. more »
- Once-rare argus butterfly thriving thanks to climate change
- Global warming is threatening the existence of many species, such as the giant polar bear, but in the case of Britain's brown argus butterfly, it took a species in trouble and made it thrive. more »
- Yahoo scraps digital magazine designed for iPad
- Yahoo has killed Livestand, a tablet magazine, just six months after its debut on the iPad. more »
Bob McDonald's Blog
Government to shut down unique fresh water research area May. 25, 2012 12:31 PM The Experimental Lakes Area research facility in Northern Ontario is being closed down after 44 years of providing invaluable data to scientists in Canada and internationally, a decision that has stunned researchers and environmental groups.
Quirks & Quarks
- May 26: Before the Lights Go Out May. 25, 2012 4:15 PM A new book, "Before the Lights Go Out: Conquering the Energy Crisis Before It Conquers Us", suggests that the unpredictable, unplanned, ad-hoc way our energy use developed in the past will shape our energy future.
Latest Features
- Aylmer triple stabbing leads to first-degree murder charges
- Everest victim's husband says family not seeking government help
- B.C. premier unhappy with disgraced Mountie's transfer
- Canada ending 'Buffalo shuffle' for visas, closing consulate
- What a Greek euro exit could mean for Canada
- Third B.C. salmon farm quarantined
- RCMP officer charged in fatal crash
- Police probe Halifax homicide after shooting
- Ottawa man in hospital after lightning strike

