Bill 40 explained in plain English
Human Rights Code Amendment Act (Genetic Characteristics), 2018
Ontario legislature bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.
At a glance
Official Legislative Assembly of Ontario snapshot for 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. Representative vote breakdowns appear when the Assembly publishes an Ayes and Nays page for the bill.
Our plain-language take, written for civic education.
Source: By PoliticalData.ca
This bill amends the Ontario Human Rights Code to prohibit discrimination based on genetic characteristics, with specific exceptions for insurance contracts.
Bill 40, also known as the Human Rights Code Amendment Act (Genetic Characteristics), 2018, amends the Ontario Human Rights Code. The bill adds "genetic characteristics" as a prohibited ground for discrimination, alongside existing grounds like age, race, and disability. This means that in areas such as services, employment, and housing, individuals cannot be discriminated against based on their genetic traits, including the potential to develop certain diseases. It also clarifies that the right to equal treatment includes the right to refuse genetic testing or the disclosure of its results. However, the bill allows for certain exceptions for insurance contracts (automobile, life, accident, sickness, disability, group insurance, and life annuities) where distinctions based on genetic characteristics may be permitted if they are reasonable and bona fide.
- Adds "genetic characteristics" as a prohibited ground of discrimination under the Ontario Human Rights Code.
- Ensures the right to equal treatment, without discrimination based on genetic characteristics, in areas including services, goods, facilities, accommodation, contracts, employment, and organizational membership.
- Clarifies that the right to equal treatment includes protection if a person refuses to undergo genetic testing or disclose its results.
- Establishes exceptions for certain types of insurance contracts, allowing them to make distinctions or exclusions based on genetic characteristics if these are reasonable and bona fide.
- Amends multiple sections of the Human Rights Code to include 'genetic characteristics'.
- Individuals in Ontario
- Employers
- Providers of services, goods, and facilities
- Landlords and providers of accommodation
- Organizations
- Insurers (automobile, life, accident, sickness, disability, group insurance, life annuities)
- Right to equal treatment without discrimination because of genetic characteristics in relation to services, goods, facilities, accommodation, contracts, employment, and organizational membership.
- Right to equal treatment without discrimination if a person refuses to undergo a genetic test or disclose its results.
- Obligation for entities covered by the Code not to discriminate based on genetic characteristics.
- The Act came into force on the day it received Royal Assent.
- Insurance contracts are permitted to differentiate, distinguish, exclude, or make preferences on reasonable and bona fide grounds related to genetic characteristics.
- The bill does not specify what constitutes 'reasonable and bona fide grounds' for distinctions made by insurance contracts regarding genetic characteristics.
- The bill does not detail the procedures or penalties for violations of the Human Rights Code, as it focuses on amending the grounds for discrimination.
Adds 'genetic characteristics' as a prohibited ground for discrimination in various sections related to services, goods, facilities, accommodation, contracts, employment, and membership in organizations. It also introduces specific provisions regarding the right to refuse genetic testing and outlines exceptions for insurance contracts.
Source: Sections 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 10, 22.1, and Clause 24 (1) (a)
Generated using AI from official bill text. Not legal advice. It is written by PoliticalData.ca for civic education, automatically checked and spot-reviewed before publishing.
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Vote Summary
This bill is still active. We only show vote counts after the legislature publishes a recorded division.
No published representative vote breakdown
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Official sources
Status, sponsor, votes, and timeline on this page are drawn from these official legislative sources and public records. Each summary above is attributed to its own source.
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