New Ontario laws and regulations come into effect on New Year's Day
CTV
Several new Ontario laws and regulatory changes are set to come into effect on New Year's Day, including daycare safe-arrival rules and penalties for inappropriately accessing patients' personal health information.
Several new Ontario laws and regulatory changes are set to come into effect on New Year's Day, including daycare safe-arrival rules and penalties for inappropriately accessing patients' personal health information.
As of Jan. 1, 2024, the province will require all child-care operators to develop a policy outlining what steps they will take to closely monitor when a child does not arrive or is not picked up as expected.
The changes are intended to prevent the rare, but horrendous deaths of young children inadvertently left in hot cars.
Safe arrival systems have long been in place in schools, where children are as young as three or four when starting junior kindergarten, but not in child-care settings, where children are younger and more vulnerable.
Other new regulations taking effect on Monday will allow Ontario's Information and Privacy Commissioner to fine individuals or organizations who inappropriately access or share a patient's personal health information.
Several changes to the tow-truck industry are also set to come into force, including new customer rights.
Those will include the right to provide consent to tow a car, where it will be towed, access to the vehicle after the fact and rights related to invoices and payments.