Client Update: The Personal Health Information Act (PHIA) is coming…..

DOES IT APPLY TO YOU?

On June 1, 2013, the Personal Health Information Act (PHIA) comes into force in Nova Scotia.  If you are involved in health care in Nova Scotia, you need to know whether PHIA applies to you.

PHIA is very detailed provincial legislation which will govern the collection, use, disclosure, retention and disposal and destruction of personal health information by a custodian or an individual to whom a custodian has disclosed the information.

To determine whether PHIA applies to you, you must understand what is meant by “personal health information” and you need to know whether you are a “custodian”, which are both defined in PHIA.

Stewart McKelvey has prepared a Guide to PHIA to assist you in understanding the requirements imposed by this new Act.  The foregoing is intended for general information only. For further information regarding PHIA, please contact a member of the Stewart McKelvey Health Law practice group or IP/IT/Entertainment practice group.