Since the Canadian federal government introduced legislation governing medical assistance in dying (“MAiD”), the provinces and territories, which are responsible for the delivery of health care services in Canada, have adopted a variety of processes and procedures to deal with
In March 2017, Parliament gave third reading to Bill S-201, also known as the Genetic Non-Discrimination Act. The Genetic Non-Discrimination Act was introduced as a Senate bill by now-retired Liberal Senator James Cowan in December 2015 to ensure that fear
In the 2015 Federal election, the Liberal Party of Canada ran on a platform that included the legalization of recreational cannabis. Following the election, a task force was created to report on legalization and regulation, and a report was delivered
Australia is set to trial a new model of primary health care based on the successful “Health Care Homes” programs in Canada and the United States. Australia’s version of the Health Care Homes scheme was proposed in broad terms in December 2015 by the Primary Health Care Advisory Group, in its Better Outcomes for People with Chronic and Complex Health Conditions report. Key elements of the proposed scheme included:
On May 4, 2016, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) signed a “systems recognition arrangement” with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and Health Canada recognizing the comparability of the U.S. and Canadian food safety systems. This is only the second time that the FDA has recognized a foreign food safety system as comparable, with the only other recognized system being New Zealand signed in 2012. However, similar systems recognition arrangements are underway between the FDA and Australia and the European Commission.
In Low v. Pfizer Canada Inc. the British Columbia Court of Appeal accepted Pfizer’s argument that the Canadian patent regulatory regime does not provide the basis for a civil action by consumers based on alleged breaches of the patent regime. The Court found, in relation to a claim pertaining to Pfizer’s Viagra, that the patent regime conferred no rights on consumers, nor did the regime evince and intention to allow consumers to make claims. The Court accepted that where Parliament has comprehensively legislated in a particular area, as it has in respect to patents, it was reasonable to infer that it did not intend recovery to extend beyond those embodied in the regime. As a result, Mr. Low’s claim, which was based on the patent regime, was dismissed.
The City of Toronto recently launched a pilot program that allows individuals to anonymously report suspected cases of food poisoning to Toronto Public Health. The program, which Toronto has dubbed “GastroBusters”, allows residents to anonymously report the details of their
On June 13, 2015, the Canadian government published proposed Regulations Amending the food and Drug Regulations – Nutrition Labelling, Other Labelling Provisions and Food Colours, for a 75 day comment period. The pre-publication of the regulations follows a two
New rules have come into force for the Canadian Agricultural Review Tribunal (the “Tribunal”).
In Canada, certain decisions affecting the food industry have been delegated to quasi-judicial administrative tribunals. Administrative tribunals have been created for the purpose because they facilitate
The World Health Organization (“WHO”) dedicated last week’s World Health Day to spreading awareness of food safety. World Health Day is celebrated on April 7 each year to mark the anniversary of the 1948 founding of the WHO. In the