B.C. ministry warned birth alerts ‘illegal and unconstitutional’ months before banning them – Toronto Star

Jan. 12, 2021

Months before British Columbia officially ended the controversial practice of birth alerts, government lawyers advised the Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD) that the practice was “illegal and unconstitutional” and posed a “litigation risk,” according to records obtained by IndigiNews.

When a social worker feels an expectant parent may put their newborn at risk, they can issue a “birth alert” or a “hospital alert,” flagging the expectant parent to hospital staff without their consent, and directing them to notify social workers as soon as the baby’s born.

MCFD records show that B.C.’s Ministry of Attorney General sent a memo to the ministry on May 6, 2019, confirming that “the use of hospital alerts, and other activities involving the disclosure of information without the consent of expectant parents is both illegal and unconstitutional.”

Read More: https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2021/01/12/bc-ministry-warned-birth-alerts-illegal-and-unconstitutional-months-before-banning-them.html