Bill 46: Personal Health Information Act (amended)

This change primarily affects healthcare providers and custodians of personal health information in Nova Scotia — including doctors, nurses, pharmacists, hospitals, and clinics. In day-to-day practice, these professionals handle sensitive patient records and must decide when it is legally permissible to share that information without asking the patient first. The amended threshold gives them more flexibility to disclose information earlier in a potential harm situation, without waiting for a danger to become imminent. This applies equally to solo practitioners and large health organizations, since the obligation to protect patient privacy — and the judgment call about when to override it — falls on any custodian of personal health information.