B.C. law secures e-Health records.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

British Columbia recently became the first Canadian province to create a legislative framework with specific provisions to govern the access and protection of electronic health information, paving the way for citizens to be able to view their health records securely and easily from their computer.

The e-Health Personal Health and Information Access and Protection of Privacy Act could eventually create paperless medical offices, allowing physicians to store information about patients on their computers as opposed to in individual paper file folders, Health Minister George Abbott told The Canadian Press.

The e-Health law gives medical researchers access to the electronic health database while ensuring privacy, Abbott said. Individuals can block access to their own information in health data banks, except in cases where they are incapacitated in an emergency or with their consent.

Abbott said the new law prohibits disclosing information from electronic health databases for market research. The government said it will create a committee to evaluate requests for data for health research or planning purposes.

Maximum fines for violating the law will be $200,000 (Cdn.), according to The Canadian Press.