Protection of Personal Health Information/Recovery of Tight Gas and Tight Oil (December 7)
Dr. Taft: Thanks, Mr. Speaker. For the second time this week we’ve heard of a health professional, driven by passion and revenge, grossly violating the privacy of innocent people’s health records.
In the most recent case a pharmacist unlawfully obtained the prescription medication information of eight people and posted it on Facebook.
To the minister of health: has the government considered that personal health information illegally posted on the web will be widely available in cyberspace forever? Are these violations creating permanent victims?
Mr. Horne: Well, Mr. Speaker, the case to which the hon. member refers is a very serious matter and is taken very seriously by this government. In fact, the individual in question was prosecuted and fined. I would leave it to others to determine. I think any time personal health information is inappropriately or illegally accessed by anyone, a health professional or anyone else, we have serious cause for concern in this House.
The Speaker: The hon. member.
Dr. Taft: Thanks, Mr. Speaker. Well, given that the victims in this case were a group of church ladies, who are probably not IT specialists, who have had their medical information posted on the Internet, will the government be providing any support to help these people fully erase their records from all web access?
Mr. Horne: Well, Mr. Speaker, to my knowledge this government or my department has not been approached with such a request. Again, I agree with the hon. member about the serious nature of the crime and the impact that the electronic rebroadcasting, if you will, of this information has on individuals. But to this date we have not been contacted with such a request.
Dr. Taft: Mr. Speaker, given that cases like these threaten public confidence in electronic health records and maybe even discourage people from disclosing crucial information to health care providers because they’re worried that it’s going to get spread all over, what steps is the minister taking to better protect Albertans’ most personal of personal information?
Mr. Horne: Well, Mr. Speaker, we’ve taken a number of steps over the years to do everything we can to strengthen the protection of personal health information. Unfortunately, it is beyond our ability to legislate or to regulate the behaviour of individuals who would intentionally engage in such behaviour and cause serious damage to others. We will continue to monitor the security of personal health information. It is a subject of constant discussion between my department and Alberta Health Services, and I’m quite confident that wherever we can find an opportunity to strengthen that protection, we will take full advantage.
Recovery of Tight Gas and Tight Oil
Dr. Taft: Thanks, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Minister of Energy. In recent years the price of natural gas collapsed and along with it royalties to the government because of technologies that release vast amounts of tight gas. Now, due to the same technologies there are suggestions the oil market could be flooded with so-called tight oil, driving oil prices into the same low, long-term plateau that hit natural gas and of course, along with them, royalties. To the minister: is this government paying attention to the emergence of tight oil supplies? If so, what’s it finding?
Dr. Morton: Mr. Speaker, I’m happy to respond that we’re closely monitoring that. In fact, I’d be happy to show the hon. member a map in my office – it actually just came in last night – that shows all the land sales in the province over the last three years. It’s very clear that it’s focusing on tight gas and tight oil. While the abundance of natural gas in North America and the world has driven the price down, so far the exploration of so-called tight oil has been a very positive influence on the Alberta market.
Dr. Taft: Well, that’s good to hear. Let’s just hope it continues because the concern is that it won’t.
Does this government have forecasts for the expected impact of tight oil on the Alberta or Canadian or North American supplies and prices?
Dr. Morton: Mr. Speaker, our forecasts, of course, are based not only on internal estimates, but we also use a variety of well-recognized commercial sources, banks, and investment companies as well. All of those forecasts continue to show robust growth for demand even with growing supply and gradually rising prices.
The Speaker: The hon. member.
Dr. Taft: Thanks. Again to the same minister: what is the government doing to assess the potential impact on Alberta’s royalty revenue from oil supplies and prices if there is a prolonged flow of tight oil onto the market?
Dr. Morton: Well, Mr. Speaker, of course, we pay close attention to royalties, both present and projected, but we do not anticipate, nor do any of the other financial institutions that do these projections, a collapse of oil prices. We actually think that one of the areas of growth for royalties will be in tight oil.
Alberta Hansard, December 7, 2011