OntarioPassed44th Parliament, 1st Session

Bill 13 explained in plain English

Primary Care Act, 2025

Health & Health Care

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

How This Type of Bill Becomes Law Official source

At a glance

Jurisdiction

Ontario Legislature

Legislature / Parliament

Legislative Assembly of Ontario

Session

44th Parliament, 1st Session

Bill number

Bill 13

Full title

Primary Care Act, 2025

Current status

Passed

Latest event

Royal Assent received

Last updated

Jun 5, 2025

Sponsor

Sylvia Jones

Official Legislative Assembly of Ontario snapshot for 44th 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

Royal Assent received

Latest Activity

Jun 5, 2025

Sponsor

Sylvia Jones

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

The Primary Care Act, 2025 establishes Ontario's vision for primary care by setting out six objectives for the publicly funded primary care system and requiring the Minister of Health to report annually on progress toward these goals.

What It Means

This law creates a framework for Ontario's primary care system. It sets out what the government aims to achieve in primary care, focusing on six key goals: (1) ensuring people across Ontario can have an ongoing relationship with a primary care clinician or team; (2) making sure primary care is coordinated with other health and social services; (3) providing timely access to primary care; (4) ensuring primary care is free from barriers and discrimination; (5) giving people access to their health information through a connected digital system; and (6) making the system responsive to community needs. The Minister of Health must prepare and publish a report each year describing how Ontario is working toward these goals. The report must include information about how many people have an ongoing relationship with a primary care provider. The law clarifies that it does not create private legal rights or duties, and that failure to follow the Act does not invalidate government policies or decisions. The law came into force on the day it received Royal Assent (June 5, 2025).

What This Bill Does

Enacts the Primary Care Act, 2025 as a new law in Ontario
Establishes six objectives for Ontario's publicly funded primary care system: province-wide access to documented ongoing relationships with primary care clinicians or teams; coordination with other health and social services; timely access; freedom from barriers and discrimination; digital access to personal health information; and system responsiveness to community needs
Requires the Minister of Health to prepare an annual report on the government's progress toward achieving these objectives
Requires the annual report to include the percentage of insured persons who have an ongoing relationship with a primary care clinician or team
Allows the Lieutenant Governor in Council to make regulations to define terms, add details to the objectives, prescribe additional information for reports, and govern how reports are made public
Clarifies that the Act does not establish private law rights or duties, including duties of care or fiduciary duties
States that failure to comply with the Act does not affect the validity of any policy, Act, regulation, directive, instrument, or decision

Who Is Affected

Insured persons in Ontario (people covered by Ontario's health insurance system) – affected by the primary care objectives and system design
The Minister of Health – required to prepare and publish annual reports on progress toward primary care objectives
Primary care clinicians and teams – subject to the objectives and framework established by the Act
Health and social service providers – involved in coordinating care with primary care
Indigenous peoples in Ontario – specifically recognized in the government's commitment to improve access while respecting their dignity and rights
French language speakers in Ontario – specifically recognized in the government's commitment to improve access while respecting their needs
The Government of Ontario – responsible for implementing and maintaining a primary care system aligned with the Act's objectives

Rights, Duties, Or Obligations

The Minister of Health must prepare an annual report describing how Ontario is working to achieve the primary care objectives
The first report must be made public no later than one year after the Act came into force (by June 5, 2026); subsequent reports must be published within one year of the previous report
The report must include the percentage of insured persons who have an ongoing relationship with a primary care clinician or team
The report must include any other information the Minister considers appropriate and any information prescribed by regulation
Insured persons have the opportunity (but not a guaranteed right enforceable through private law) to have an ongoing relationship with a primary care clinician or team across Ontario
Insured persons have the opportunity to receive coordinated, timely, accessible, and inclusive primary care services
Insured persons have the opportunity to access their personal health information through a digitally-integrated primary care system

Important Dates

June 5, 2025 – The Primary Care Act, 2025 received Royal Assent and came into force
June 5, 2026 – The Minister must make the first annual report available to the public (no later than one year after the Act came into force)
June 5, 2027 and annually thereafter – Subsequent reports must be published no later than one year after the previous report was published

Financial Or Tax Impacts

The Act does not specify any direct financial costs, taxes, or fees
The Act requires the Minister to prepare and publish annual reports, which will involve government administrative costs not quantified in the bill

Enforcement Or Penalties

Section 6 states that failure to comply with the Act or regulations does not affect the validity of any policy, Act, regulation, directive, instrument, or decision – meaning non-compliance does not automatically invalidate government actions
The Act does not establish private law rights or duties that individuals could use to sue for damages or breach – compliance is a matter between the government and the public, not subject to private legal actions
No specific penalties, fines, or enforcement mechanisms are outlined in the Act

Uncertainties Or Limits

The Act describes six 'objectives' using language like 'should have the opportunity to' – these are goals the government aims for, not absolute legal guarantees. The difference between an objective and a right is important: failure to achieve an objective does not create liability
Section 5 explicitly states the Act does not establish private law rights or duties, meaning individuals cannot sue the government or health care providers for failure to achieve the objectives
The Act does not specify how many primary care providers are needed, what funding will be allocated, or what timelines apply to implementing the objectives
Section 6 states that failure to comply with the Act does not invalidate government policies or decisions, limiting the legal enforceability of the Act
Specific implementation details are to be set by regulation, but the Act does not detail what those regulations will contain
The Act does not define 'primary care' – the meaning of this term is not provided in the legislation
The bill text does not specify which government ministry or entity will be responsible for implementing the objectives, beyond assigning reporting to the Minister of Health
It is unclear what 'performance information' or 'key performance indicators' will be required in reports, as this is left to future regulation

Laws Or Regulations Affected

Primary Care Act, 2025

enacts

A new Ontario statute is created to establish the government's vision for primary care and set objectives for the publicly funded primary care system

Source: Section 1, Explanatory Note

Health Insurance Act

referenced

The definition of 'insured person' in this Act is taken from the Health Insurance Act, meaning the Act applies to people covered under Ontario's health insurance system

Source: Section 1 (Definitions)

Personal Health Information Protection Act, 2004

referenced

The definition of 'personal health information' in this Act is taken from this legislation, relating to how health information is protected and managed

Source: Section 1 (Definitions)

Human Rights Code

referenced

The Primary Care Act incorporates protections against discrimination from the Human Rights Code as part of its objective to provide inclusive primary care

Source: Section 3, Objective 4

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms

referenced

The Act references Charter protections against discrimination as part of ensuring inclusive primary care services

Source: Section 3, Objective 4

Canada Health Act

referenced

The government reaffirms its commitment to Canada Health Act criteria (public administration, comprehensiveness, universality, portability, and accessibility) in its primary care system

Source: Preamble

Executive Council Act

referenced

Allows responsibility for administering this Act to be assigned or transferred to other Executive Council members beyond the Minister of Health

Source: Section 1 (Definitions)

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

May 7, 2025

Step 2

Second reading

Jun 2, 2025

Step 3

Committee review

Not reached yet

Step 4

Third reading

Jun 2, 2025

Step 5

Royal assent

Jun 5, 2025

Vote Summary

Yes

112

Abstain

Absent / Other

Final recorded vote

Jun 2, 2025

112 representative positions are recorded in this official snapshot for this vote.

Sponsor

Sylvia Jones

Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario | Dufferin—Caledon

Jurisdiction

Ontario Legislature

Representative Voting Breakdown

Vote badges include text labels so the table stays readable for everyone, even without color cues alone.

Representative	Role	Riding	Party	Vote	Notes
Adil Shamji MPP	MPP	Don Valley East	Ontario Liberal Party	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Aislinn Clancy MPP	MPP	Kitchener Centre	Green Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Alexa Gilmour MPP	MPP	Parkdale—High Park	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Amarjot Sandhu MPP	MPP	Brampton West	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Andrea Hazell MPP	MPP	Scarborough—Guildwood	Ontario Liberal Party	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Andrew Dowie MPP	MPP	Windsor—Tecumseh	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Anthony Leardi MPP	MPP	Essex	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Aris Babikian MPP	MPP	Scarborough—Agincourt	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Bill Rosenberg MPP	MPP	Algoma—Manitoulin	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Billy Denault MPP	MPP	Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Billy Pang MPP	MPP	Markham—Unionville	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Bobbi Ann Brady MPP	MPP	Haldimand—Norfolk	Independent	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Brian Riddell MPP	MPP	Cambridge	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Brian Saunderson MPP	MPP	Simcoe—Grey	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Catherine Fife MPP	MPP	Waterloo	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Catherine McKenney MPP	MPP	Ottawa Centre	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Chandra Pasma MPP	MPP	Ottawa West—Nepean	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Chris Glover MPP	MPP	Spadina—Fort York	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Chris Scott MPP	MPP	Sault Ste. Marie	Independent	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Daisy Wai MPP	MPP	Richmond Hill	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Dave Smith MPP	MPP	Peterborough—Kawartha	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
David Smith MPP	MPP	Scarborough Centre	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Dawn Gallagher Murphy MPP	MPP	Newmarket—Aurora	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Deepak Anand MPP	MPP	Mississauga—Malton	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Doly Begum MPP	MPP	Scarborough Southwest	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Effie J. Triantafilopoulos MPP	MPP	Oakville North—Burlington	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
France Gélinas MPP	MPP	Nickel Belt	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
George Darouze MPP	MPP	Carleton	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Guy Bourgouin MPP	MPP	Mushkegowuk—James Bay	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hardeep Singh Grewal MPP	MPP	Brampton East	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Andrea Khanjin MPP	MPP	Barrie—Innisfil	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Caroline Mulroney MPP	MPP	York—Simcoe	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Charmaine A. Williams MPP	MPP	Brampton Centre	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. David Piccini MPP	MPP	Northumberland—Peterborough South	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Doug Downey MPP	MPP	Barrie—Springwater—Oro-Medonte	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Ernie Hardeman MPP	MPP	Oxford	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. George Pirie MPP	MPP	Timmins	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Graydon Smith MPP	MPP	Parry Sound—Muskoka	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Greg Rickford MPP	MPP	Kenora—Rainy River	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Jill Dunlop MPP	MPP	Simcoe North	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Kevin Holland MPP	MPP	Thunder Bay—Atikokan	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Kinga Surma MPP	MPP	Etobicoke Centre	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Laurie Scott MPP	MPP	Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Lisa M. Thompson MPP	MPP	Huron—Bruce	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Michael A. Tibollo MPP	MPP	Vaughan—Woodbridge	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Michael Parsa MPP	MPP	Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Michael S. Kerzner MPP	MPP	York Centre	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Mike Harris MPP	MPP	Kitchener—Conestoga	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Nina Tangri MPP	MPP	Mississauga—Streetsville	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Paul Calandra MPP	MPP	Markham—Stouffville	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Prabmeet Singh Sarkaria MPP	MPP	Brampton South	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Raymond Sung Joon Cho MPP	MPP	Scarborough North	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Rob Flack MPP	MPP	Elgin—Middlesex—London	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Sam Oosterhoff MPP	MPP	Niagara West	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Stephen Crawford MPP	MPP	Oakville	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Stephen Lecce MPP	MPP	King—Vaughan	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Steve Clark MPP	MPP	Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Sylvia Jones MPP	MPP	Dufferin—Caledon	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Todd J. McCarthy MPP	MPP	Durham	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Trevor Jones MPP	MPP	Chatham-Kent—Leamington	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Victor Fedeli MPP	MPP	Nipissing	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Vijay Thanigasalam MPP	MPP	Scarborough—Rouge Park	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Hon. Zee Hamid MPP	MPP	Milton	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Jamie West MPP	MPP	Sudbury	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Jeff Burch MPP	MPP	Niagara Centre	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Jennifer (Jennie) Stevens MPP	MPP	St. Catharines	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Jennifer K. French MPP	MPP	Oshawa	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Jess Dixon MPP	MPP	Kitchener South—Hespeler	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Jessica Bell MPP	MPP	University—Rosedale	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
John Fraser MPP	MPP	Ottawa South	Ontario Liberal Party	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
John Jordan MPP	MPP	Lanark—Frontenac—Kingston	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
John Vanthof MPP	MPP	Timiskaming—Cochrane	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Jonathan Tsao MPP	MPP	Don Valley North	Ontario Liberal Party	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Joseph Racinsky MPP	MPP	Wellington—Halton Hills	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Karen McCrimmon MPP	MPP	Kanata—Carleton	Ontario Liberal Party	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Kristyn Wong-Tam MPP	MPP	Toronto Centre	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Lee Fairclough MPP	MPP	Etobicoke—Lakeshore	Ontario Liberal Party	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Lisa Gretzky MPP	MPP	Windsor West	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Lise Vaugeois MPP	MPP	Thunder Bay—Superior North	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Logan Kanapathi MPP	MPP	Markham—Thornhill	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Lorne Coe MPP	MPP	Whitby	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Lucille Collard MPP	MPP	Ottawa—Vanier	Ontario Liberal Party	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Marit Stiles MPP	MPP	Davenport	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Mary-Margaret McMahon MPP	MPP	Beaches—East York	Ontario Liberal Party	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Matthew Rae MPP	MPP	Perth—Wellington	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Michelle Cooper MPP	MPP	Eglinton—Lawrence	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Mike Schreiner MPP	MPP	Guelph	Green Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Mohamed Firin MPP	MPP	York South—Weston	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Monica Ciriello MPP	MPP	Hamilton Mountain	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Natalie Pierre MPP	MPP	Burlington	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Paul Vickers MPP	MPP	Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Peggy Sattler MPP	MPP	London West	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Peter Tabuns MPP	MPP	Toronto—Danforth	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Ric Bresee MPP	MPP	Hastings—Lennox and Addington	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Rob Cerjanec MPP	MPP	Ajax	Ontario Liberal Party	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Robert Bailey MPP	MPP	Sarnia—Lambton	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Robin Lennox MPP	MPP	Hamilton Centre	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Rudy Cuzzetto MPP	MPP	Mississauga—Lakeshore	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Sandy Shaw MPP	MPP	Hamilton West—Ancaster—Dundas	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Silvia Gualtieri MPP	MPP	Mississauga East—Cooksville	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Stéphane Sarrazin MPP	MPP	Glengarry—Prescott—Russell	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Stephanie Bowman MPP	MPP	Don Valley West	Ontario Liberal Party	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Stephanie Smyth MPP	MPP	Toronto—St. Paul's	Ontario Liberal Party	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Stephen Blais MPP	MPP	Orléans	Ontario Liberal Party	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Ted Hsu MPP	MPP	Kingston and the Islands	Ontario Liberal Party	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Terence Kernaghan MPP	MPP	London North Centre	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Teresa J. Armstrong MPP	MPP	London—Fanshawe	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Tom Rakocevic MPP	MPP	Humber River—Black Creek	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Tyler Allsopp MPP	MPP	Bay of Quinte	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Tyler Watt MPP	MPP	Nepean	Ontario Liberal Party	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Wayne Gates MPP	MPP	Niagara Falls	New Democratic Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.
Will Bouma MPP	MPP	Brantford—Brant	Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario	Yes	Recorded without an additional note.

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