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Bill 115, Black Health Equity Act, 2026

Gélinas, France

Lennox, Robin

Rakocevic, Tom

Wong-Tam, Kristyn

Current status:

First Reading Ordered for Second Reading

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Bill 115 Original (PDF)

EXPLANATORY

NOTE

The

Bill enacts the Black Health Equity Act, 2026 .

Section

2 of the Act provides that the Government of Ontario shall recognize the right

of Black residents to equitable, culturally safe and anti-racist healthcare.

Section

3 requires the Ministry of Health to develop a Black Health Equity Framework

based on this recognition. Among other things, the Framework is required to

include annual racial equity audits of all publicly funded health institutions,

clear institutional benchmarks for racial equity and enforceable accountability

measures for institutions that fail to meet these benchmarks.

Section

4 requires that every public health unit develop an action plan that focuses on

methods for reducing anti-Black racism, employ a dedicated Black Health Equity

Officer, track racial disparities in vaccination, screening and health

promotion access and make racial equity a required metric in public health

performance reviews.

Section 5 requires hospitals and public health units to

develop and implement a plan that includes the creation of a Black-led Patient

Advocacy and Protection Unit for the hospital and a process for race-based data

collection across all care environments and public reporting of this data.

Section

6 requires the Ministry to establish a Black Health Equity Council that holds

institutional and government bodies accountable to equity goals and reviews

government budgets, policies and legislation through an anti-Black racism lens.

Section 7 requires the Government of Ontario to recognize mental health care as

a matter of health sovereignty that is not a mere privilege. The Minister of Health

is required to develop a plan to train and certify mental health care providers

in racial trauma and anti-Black racism, fully cover the costs of culturally

responsive mental health services for Black Ontarians and establish Black-led

mental health care providers and wellness programs.

Section

8 requires the Ministry to establish a Black Health Equity Inspectorate that

investigates and intervenes in institutions exhibiting racial harm, monitors

compliance with the requirements of the Act, imposes funding consequences for

non-compliance and reports its findings to the Ministry.

Section 9 requires the

Ministry to establish Black-led Advocacy and Protection Units within hospitals

that include staff with knowledge of legal rights and the justice system, that are

accessible virtually and in person and that report to the Ministry.

Section 10

requires the Ministry to work with unions, post-secondary institutions and

regulatory bodies to include anti-Black racism protections in collective

agreements, embed race equity in hiring, retention and promotion practices,

develop and implement procedures to protect Black staff from retaliation when

reporting harm and include racism as a reportable category in workplace

violence protocols.

Section 11 requires the Government of Ontario to develop a

system for survivors of anti-Black racism in health care to have access to

justice.

Bill 115 2026

Act respecting health equity for Black Ontarians

His

Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the

Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:

Definitions

this Act,

“Minister”

means the Minister of Health; (“ministre”)

“Ministry”

means the Ministry of Health; (“ministère”)

“regulations”

means the regulations made under this Act. (“règlements)

Black

health equity

The

Government of Ontario shall recognize the right of Black residents to

equitable, culturally safe and anti-racist healthcare.

Black

Health Equity Framework

(1) The

Ministry shall develop a Black Health Equity Framework based on the principles

recognized under

section 2.

Contents

(2) The

Black Health Equity Framework shall include the following:

1. Annual

racial equity audits of all publicly funded health institutions.

2. Clear

institutional benchmarks for racial equity.

3. Enforceable

accountability measures for institutions that fail to meet the benchmarks

referred to in paragraph 2.

4. The

creation of independent enforcement bodies with powers to investigate and

sanction publicly funded health service providers.

5. The

linking of health service provider funding and, where applicable, executive

compensation to race equity outcomes.

6. The

establishment of a Black health workforce pipeline in accordance with

subsection (3).

7. The

establishment of Black healing and wellness hubs in accordance with subsection

(4).

8. The

development of Black health data infrastructure and ownership protocols in

accordance with subsection (5).

Black

health workforce pipeline

(3) The

Black health workforce pipeline established under paragraph 6 of subsection

(2) shall include the following:

1. Tuition-free

training programs for Black students in clinical and allied health fields.

2. Paid

placements, internships and mentorships across the health care system.

3. Supports

for workplace navigation, leadership advancement and retention.

4. A

province-wide Black health talent database to support equitable recruitment.

Black

healing and wellness hubs

(4) Black

healing and wellness hubs established under paragraph 7 of subsection (2) shall

be governed by community health centres from the Black community and shall incorporate

the following:

1. Clinical

care, doulas and birthwork , peer support and elder support.

2. Resources

for helping to navigate legal issues.

3. A

focus on food justice and community wellness.

4. The

use of storytelling as a form of mental health care.

5. Services

for Black youth, single mothers, members of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, newcomers

to Canada and elders.

Black

health data infrastructure and ownership protocols

(5) The

Black health data infrastructure and ownership protocols developed under

paragraph 8 of subsection (2) shall include the following:

1. Requirements

that all health institutions collect, store and publish race-disaggregated

data.

2. Protocols

for ethical data usage and data ownership developed in consultation with

members of Black communities.

3. Measures

to ensure funding decisions and structural reform measures are data driven.

4. Measures

to publicly report health indicators for the Black community, including figures

related to the use of emergency medical services, the number of Black Ontarians

without access to primary care and the number of Black Ontarians on wait lists

for long-term care.

Same

(6) The

Black health data infrastructure and ownership protocols developed under

paragraph 8 of subsection (2) shall be developed in partnership with Black

communities and a range of Black-led organizations that reflect the diversity

of the Black community, including in terms of disability, sexuality and

language.

Anti-Black

racism action plans

Every

public health unit shall,

(

a) develop

an action plan that focuses on methods for reducing anti-Black racism;

(

b) employ

a dedicated Black Health Equity Officer;

(

c) track

racial disparities in vaccination, screening and health promotion access; and

(

d) make

racial equity a required metric in public health performance reviews.

Black

health equity implementation plans

Every

hospital and public health unit shall develop and implement a Black health

equity implementation plan that,

(

a) is

based on the principles recognized under

section 2;

(

b) includes

the creation of a Black-led Patient Advocacy and Protection Unit for the

hospital; and

(

c) includes

a process for race-based data collection across all care environments and

public reporting of this data.

Black

Health Equity Council

(1) The

Ministry shall, no more than 60 days after the day this

section comes into

force, establish a Black Health Equity Council.

Composition

(2) The

Black Health Equity Council shall be composed of members appointed by the

Minister.

Same

(3) The

Minister shall ensure that the Black Health Equity Council includes members of

the following groups:

1. A

range of Black-led organizations that reflect the diversity of the Black

community, including in terms of disability, sexuality and language.

2. Clinicians.

3. Researchers.

4. Community

advocates.

Remuneration

and expenses

(4) The

Lieutenant Governor in Council may determine the remuneration and expenses of

any person appointed under subsection (2).

Functions

(5) The

Black Health Equity Council shall perform the following functions:

1. Hold

institutional and government bodies accountable to equity goals.

2. Review

government budgets, policies and legislation through an anti-Black racism lens.

Formal

oversight authority

(6) The

Black Health Equity Council shall be granted formal oversight authority for the

purposes of performing the functions set out in subsection (5).

Mental

health care

(1) The

Government of Ontario shall recognize mental health care as a matter of health

sovereignty that is not a mere privilege.

Plan

(2) No

more than six months after the day this

section comes into force, the Minister

shall develop a plan to do the following:

1. Train

and certify mental health care providers in racial trauma and anti-Black racism.

2. Fully

cover the costs of culturally responsive mental health services for Black

Ontarians.

3. Establish

Black-led mental health care providers and wellness programs.

Publication

of plan

(3) The

Minister shall ensure the plan developed under subsection (2) is published on a

website of the Government of Ontario.

Black

Health Equity Inspectorate

(1) The

Ministry shall, no more than 60 days after the day this

section comes into

force, establish a Black Health Equity Inspectorate.

Functions

(2) The

Black Health Equity Inspectorate shall perform the following functions:

1. Investigate

and intervene in institutions exhibiting racial harm in accordance with the regulations.

2. Monitor

compliance with the requirements under this Act.

3. Impose

funding consequences for non-compliance in accordance with the regulations.

4. Report

its findings to the Ministry.

Publication

(3) The

Minister shall ensure that the findings of the Black Health Equity Inspectorate

reported under paragraph 4 of subsection (2) are published on a Government of Ontario

website.

Black-led

Advocacy and Protection Units

(1) The

Ministry shall establish Black-led Advocacy and Protection Units within

hospitals that,

(

a) include

staff with knowledge of legal rights and the justice system;

(

b) are

accessible virtually and in person; and

(

c) report

to the Ministry.

Reporting

to Ministry

(2) In

reporting to the Ministry under clause (1) (c), each Black-led Advocacy and

Protection Unit shall have independent authority to determine which matters to

report on.

Mobile

units

(3) Where

hospital-embedded units are not feasible due to geography, the Ministry shall establish

mobile Black-led Patient Advocacy and Protection Units that meet the

requirements set out in subsections (1) and (2) and cover multiple institutions

within underserved areas to ensure continuity of care.

Work

with unions and other bodies

The

Ministry shall work with unions, post-secondary institutions and regulatory

bodies to do the following:

1. Include

anti-Black racism protections in collective agreements.

2. Embed

race equity in hiring, retention and promotion practices.

3. Develop

and implement procedures to protect Black staff from retaliation when reporting

harm.

4. Include

racism as a reportable category in workplace violence protocols.

Reparative

justice and redress

The

Government of Ontario shall develop a system for survivors of anti-Black racism

in health care to have access to justice that includes the following:

1. Survivor-led

processes rooted in dignity, truth-telling and accountability.

2. Financial

compensation for survivors.

3. Public

acknowledgement of anti-Black racism in health care.

4. Systemic

reforms.

5. Monitoring

of institutional participation and publication of compliance reviews.

Regulations

The

Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations,

(

a) governing

investigations and interventions for the purposes of paragraph 1 of subsection 8

(2);

(

b) governing

funding consequences for the purposes of paragraph 3 of subsection 8 (2).

Appropriation

required

The

following provisions do not apply unless money has been appropriated by the

Legislature for the purpose of those provisions:

1. Paragraph

2 of subsection 3 (3).

2. Subsection

6 (4).

3. Paragraph

2 of subsection 7 (2).

4. Paragraph

2 of

section 11.

Commencement

This Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.

Short

title

The

short title of this Act is the Black Health Equity Act, 2026 .

Date Bill stage Event Outcome Committee

May 5, 2026

First Reading

Ordered for Second Reading

May 5, 2026

First Reading

Vote

Carried

First Reading

May 5, 2026

Carried

Ordered for Second Reading

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