The right to privacy is a fundamental human right. Except in narrow circumstances that must be legally and ethically justified, all people, including those living with HIV, should have the power to decide how, when, to whom, and to what extent their personal health information is shared.
People living with HIV often suffer discrimination as a result of the unauthorized disclosure of their HIV status. As a result, many lose their jobs, housing and insurance, and see their personal relationships with family and friends compromised.
Our work contributes to the informed development of Canadian laws and policies that support the right to privacy and the confidentiality of health information of people living with HIV.
Protecting and promoting the human right to privacy is essential to meeting the public health goals of lessening the impact of HIV on individuals and communities and minimizing its transmission and to recognizing the inherent dignity of people affected by HIV.
Highlights of our work in Canada and around the world from April 1, 2018, to March 31, 2019.
Letter to the Standing Committee on Justice Policy, attention Jocelyn McCauley, Clerk March 6, 2019 As organizations involved in the response to HIV in Ontario, we write to express our concerns with certain provisions in the recently introduced Bill 68 (Comprehensive Ontario Police Services Act, 2019) – and specifically the provisions in Schedule 7 that […]
This submission is made jointly by the HIV & AIDS Legal Clinic Ontario (HALCO) and the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network in response to the call for comments from the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada on its Draft Position on Online Reputation. The rapid proliferation of personal information online, driven by the monetization of […]
This resource explains the important role of privacy and confidentiality in reducing stigma and discrimination related to STBBIs, and offers frontline health and social service providers several strategies they can use to deal with issues related to privacy, confidentiality, the criminalization of HIV non-disclosure and stigma reduction.
This fact sheet discusses common questions regarding sex offender registries in Canada in the context of the criminal law and HIV non-disclosure. This is general legal information and not legal advice. If you want legal advice specific to your situation, you should talk to a lawyer.
This guide was written for child and family service providers who provide support and assistance to people living with or affected by HIV.
This resource was produced for parents or prospective parents living with HIV, including women, transgender men and non-binary people. Its aim is to provide practical information and to foster knowledge about some of the main areas of concern that parents living with or affected by HIV may have. Also available in Spanish and Swahili.
Knowing your rights and responsibilities when it comes to HIV disclosure, privacy and confidentiality is an important way to protect your privacy. This guide provides answers to common questions on disclosure, privacy and confidentiality in the health care settings, workplaces, post-secondary institutions and other settings — places where many Indigenous people living with HIV have […]
This guide is for youth between the ages of 15 and 29 and focuses on some of the factors at play when young people living with HIV or hepatitis C (Hep C) are thinking about telling others about their HIV or Hep C status.
This series of 8 brochures (now available in 7 languages, including Arabic, Chinese and Spanish) addresses the privacy rights and disclosure obligations of people living with HIV in a variety of day-to-day contexts.
This document addresses some common HIV-related legal questions of agencies that provide services to women in Canada. The information will help service providers inform and refer the women with whom they work to appropriate legal information and support when necessary. It will also present them with guidance about their responsibilities with respect to HIV-related information. […]
