Alberta Record

· Bill / Enforcement regime changes · tabled

Bill 11 — Expanded Enforcement and Administrative Penalties in Health Care

This bill significantly expands the Minister's enforcement powers, introduces new prohibitions and administrative penalties, and allows for public disclosure of contraventions in the health care system.

Low impactCentralization of powerHealth system governanceCivil libertiesHealth-care bodiesThe public, directly

What changed

  • Introduces new prohibitions against submitting incomplete, erroneous, or false claims for benefits (new Section 12.1).
  • Prohibits persons from causing or contributing to contraventions of the Act or regulations (new Section 12.2).
  • Grants the Minister the right to recover benefits paid in contravention from flexibly participating or non-participating physicians/dentists (new Section 13.1).
  • Increases fines for offences under the Act, with first offences rising from $10,000 to $50,000 and subsequent offences from $20,000 to $100,000 (Section 14).
  • Authorizes the Minister to impose administrative penalties for contraventions, with an appeal process to an appeal panel (new Sections 28.1-28.5).
  • Allows the Minister to disclose to the public information relating to contraventions or failures to comply, with limited exceptions for safety or other criteria (new Section 20.31).

Why it matters

  • Centralizes significant enforcement and punitive powers with the Minister, expanding the state's ability to regulate health care providers and recover funds.
  • Creates a new administrative penalty regime, providing an alternative or additional enforcement mechanism outside of traditional court proceedings.
  • Introduces public disclosure of contraventions, which can impact the reputation of individuals and organizations, raising transparency and accountability concerns.

Rights affected

  • Access to information — The ability to see public records and government decisions.

Other governance concerns

  • Expanded state enforcement powers
  • Public disclosure of compliance failures
  • Increased financial penalties for contraventions

Primary sources (1)

Secondary sources (4)