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Bill C-537 (Maurice Vellacott, M.P.)
House of Commons of Canada
 

Introduction: Bill C-422 (originally Bill C-461) is a copy of Senator Haidasz's Bill S-7 that was introduced in the Senate.  C-461 passed first reading in the House of Commons and secured the 100 signatures necessary for second reading. It was re-introduced in October, 1999 as Bill C-207, but denied a vote in the Commons by the decision of a parliamentary sub-committee the following month.  It was re-introduced as Bill C-422, but died on the order paper when Parliament was dissolved for the Canadian federal election in 2000.  On February 2nd, 2001, Mr. Vellacot again brought the bill forward as C-246 in the 1st session of the new parliament, and reintroduced it to the second session on 30 October, 2002.  The present version of the bill, Bill C-537, was introduced in April, 2008.
 
  2nd Session, 39th Parliament
56-57 Elizabeth II, 2007-2008
House of Commons of Canada

BILL C-537

An Act to amend the Criminal Code (protection of conscience rights in the health care profession)

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:

1. The Criminal Code is amended by adding the following after section 425.1:

425.2 (1) The definitions in this subsection apply in this section.

“educator” means a college, university or other post-secondary institution.

“health care practitioner” means any person who may lawfully provide services to others

(a) as a physician, surgeon, dentist, nurse or other skilled health care provider;

(b) as a person engaged in the provision of medical, dental, hospital, clinical, nursing or other health care services, under the direction of a skilled health care provider or a clinic, hospital, accrediting body or government ministry; or

(c) as a teacher, professor, instructor or other person providing teaching services in any field of health care.

“human life” means the human organism at any stage of development, beginning at fertilization or creation.

“professional association” means any professional accreditation body, other than a university or college, and includes any association of health care practitioners and any trade union of health care practitioners.

“tenet” means a religious doctrine that human life is inviolable or an edict of a religion that requires that human life not be deliberately ended or that human life not be subjected to any increased risk of death when the subjection to increased risk is avoidable.

(2) Every one is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction who, being an employer or the agent of an employer,

(a) refuses to employ a health care practitioner,

(b) refuses to advance or promote a qualified health care practitioner, or

(c) dismisses, or threatens to dismiss, a health care practitioner from employment,
because the health care practitioner is, or is believed to be, unwilling to take part, directly or in an advisory capacity, in any medical procedure that offends a tenet of the practitioner’s religion, or the belief of the practitioner that human life is inviolable.

(3) Every one is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction who, being an educator or the agent of an educator in any field of health care in Canada,

(a) refuses to admit any person to courses in a field of health care, or

(b) refuses to grant accreditation in a field of health care to any person,

because the person is, or is believed to be, unwilling to take part, directly or in an advisory capacity, in any medical procedure that offends a tenet of the person’s religion, or the belief of the person that human life is inviolable.

(4) Every one is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction who, being an officer of a professional association of health care practitioners, or the agent of any such officer,
(a) refuses to admit a person to membership in the professional association,

(b) refuses to advance or promote the standing of a person as a member of the professional association, or

(c) excludes a person from, or threatens to exclude a person from, the professional association,

because the person is, or is believed to be, unwilling to take part, directly or in an advisory capacity, in any medical procedure that offends a tenet in the person’s religion, or the belief of the person that human life is inviolable.

2. This Act comes into force 90 days after the day it is assented to.
 

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