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OntarioDid not become law (session ended)42nd Parliament, 1st Session

Bill 8 explained in plain English

Transparent and Accountable Health Care Act, 2018

Ontario legislature bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.

At a glance

Jurisdiction
Ontario Legislature
Legislature / Parliament
Legislative Assembly of Ontario
Session
42nd Parliament, 1st Session
Bill number
Bill 8
Full title
Transparent and Accountable Health Care Act, 2018
Current status
Did not become law (session ended)
Latest event
Carried
Last updated
Jul 31, 2018

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.

Chamber
Legislative Assembly of Ontario
Current Stage
Carried
Latest Activity
Jul 31, 2018
Plain-language explanation
In plain English (our explanation)

Our plain-language take, written for civic education.

Source: By PoliticalData.ca

AI-assisted, reviewed before publishing
Short Version

Bill 8 requires major health sector organizations and publicly-funded suppliers that receive at least $1 million in public funds annually to comply with broader public sector accountability, salary disclosure, and Ombudsman provisions, and allows the Auditor General to audit them.

What It Means

Bill 8, the Transparent and Accountable Health Care Act, 2018, aims to increase transparency and accountability in how health care services are funded in Ontario. It requires organizations that receive significant public funding in the health sector, as well as those that supply services to these organizations and also receive significant public funding, to adhere to rules about compensation, salary disclosure, and oversight by the Ombudsman and the Auditor General. The Act also makes a minor amendment to the list of organizations that can be considered community health facilities.

What This Bill Does
  • Requires major health sector organizations and publicly-funded suppliers that receive at least $1 million in public funds annually to comply with specific accountability measures.
  • Makes these organizations and suppliers subject to the Broader Public Sector Accountability Act, 2010, regarding compensation arrangements.
  • Deems these organizations and suppliers to be governmental organizations for the purposes of the Ombudsman Act.
  • Deems these organizations and suppliers to be employers for the purposes of the Public Sector Salary Disclosure Act, 1996.
  • Authorizes the Auditor General of Ontario to audit any aspect of the operations of these organizations and suppliers.
  • Amends the list of organizations considered community health facilities.
  • Allows the Lieutenant Governor in Council to make regulations as necessary to implement the Act.
Who Is Affected
  • Major health sector organizations (defined as entities receiving at least $1 million in public funds from the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care annually).
  • Publicly-funded suppliers (defined as entities receiving at least $1 million in public funds, directly or indirectly, from major health sector organizations or other publicly-funded suppliers annually).
  • The Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care.
  • The Auditor General of Ontario.
  • The Ombudsman of Ontario.
  • The Lieutenant Governor in Council.
Rights, Duties, Or Obligations
  • Major health sector organizations and publicly-funded suppliers must comply with compensation arrangement rules under the Broader Public Sector Accountability Act, 2010.
  • Major health sector organizations and publicly-funded suppliers are subject to the Ombudsman Act.
  • Major health sector organizations and publicly-funded suppliers are subject to the Public Sector Salary Disclosure Act, 1996.
  • The Auditor General has the authority to audit any aspect of the operations of major health sector organizations and publicly-funded suppliers.
  • The Lieutenant Governor in Council has the power to make regulations.
Important Dates
  • The Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent, with the exception of Section 10.
  • Section 10 comes into force on the later of the day section 80 of Schedule 9 to the Strengthening Quality and Accountability for Patients Act, 2017 comes into force, or the day this Act receives Royal Assent.
  • The accountability measures in Sections 5, 6, 7, and 8 apply starting in the first fiscal year that begins on or after April 1, 2019, in which the organization or supplier receives at least $1 million in public funds, and for every fiscal year thereafter.
  • Major health sector organizations are defined based on public funds received in a fiscal year that begins on or after April 1, 2019.
  • Publicly-funded suppliers are defined based on public funds received in a fiscal year that begins on or after April 1, 2019.
Financial Or Tax Impacts
  • Entities designated as major health sector organizations or publicly-funded suppliers must receive at least $1 million in public funds annually to be subject to the Act's accountability measures.
Uncertainties Or Limits
  • The specific regulations that the Lieutenant Governor in Council may make are not detailed in the Act.
  • The precise date section 80 of Schedule 9 to the Strengthening Quality and Accountability for Patients Act, 2017 comes into force is not specified in this bill.
  • The bill does not specify penalties for non-compliance.
Laws Or Regulations Affected
Broader Public Sector Accountability Act, 2010
applies to additional organizations

Major health sector organizations and publicly-funded suppliers are deemed to be employers for the purposes of Part II.1 (Compensation Arrangements) of this Act, requiring them to comply with its compensation rules.

Source: Section 5

Ombudsman Act
applies to additional organizations

Major health sector organizations and publicly-funded suppliers are deemed to be governmental organizations for the purposes of this Act, making them subject to its oversight.

Source: Section 6

Public Sector Salary Disclosure Act, 1996
applies to additional organizations

Major health sector organizations and publicly-funded suppliers are deemed to be employers for the purposes of this Act, meaning their employee salaries may be subject to disclosure.

Source: Section 7

Oversight of Health Facilities and Devices Act, 2017
amended

Paragraph 4 of subsection 3 (2) of the Transparent and Accountable Health Care Act, 2018, is repealed and replaced with a reference to 'Community health facilities within the meaning of the Oversight of Health Facilities and Devices Act, 2017'.

Source: Section 10

REGULATIONS
can be created

The Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations necessary to carry out the intent and purpose of this Act.

Source: Section 9

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.

Official text

Process Snapshot

Step 1
First reading
Jul 31, 2018
Step 2
Second reading
Not reached yet
Step 3
Committee review
Not reached yet
Step 4
Third reading
Not reached yet
Step 5
Royal assent
Not reached yet

Vote Summary

No published recorded division

This bill is still active. We only show vote counts after the legislature publishes a recorded division.

Sponsor
France Gélinas
New Democratic Party of Ontario | Nickel Belt
Jurisdiction
Ontario Legislature

No published representative vote breakdown

This bill is still moving through the process. When a recorded division is published, representative positions can be listed here.

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.

How this data is sourced