The following is a review of developments affecting health care in Canada

The B.C. government has decided to go ahead with a major overhaul of lab services, even though this action was judged illegal. The government is appealing the ruling against such changes. October 2003 the government passed an Order in Council allowing it to remove funding allocated to B.C. lab doctors through the Medical Services Commission and bring it under the control of the government. The Provincial Laboratory Co-Ordinating Office is going ahead with plans to allow bidding on lab services thus allowing public and private labs to bid to service various locations. The changes are expected to save the government about $60 million a year. At the heart of the change is the province's blood testing billing practices. Every lab test that is done, has a 15% physician professional fee attached to it, although 95% of which is never touched by a physician, . In addition, there is a drawing fee to each and every test, even though you draw blood once.

Computer-accessible patient records are in various stages of development across Canada. The concept has not yet been standardized but, fully matured, an EHR could contain a patient's lab tests, X-rays, treatments such as physiotherapy, hospital admissions and discharge reports—and prescription drug information. British Columbia and Alberta now have every patient's prescription drug information available online in pharmacies across the province. P.E.I. does too, as well as in ERs and in the offices of doctors working in government clinics.