VIH Info Droits

In Quebec, HIV/AIDS is not considered a notifiable disease (MADO, or maladie à déclaration obligatoire), since it is not a contagious disease requiring immediate intervention. However, when a person has received or donated blood or tissues, HIV/AIDS is considered a notifiable disease. This is the only circumstance in which HIV/AIDS is considered a notifiable disease. 

In Quebec, however, information is collected for the purpose of ongoing surveillance. In this context, each new case of HIV/AIDS is reported to the National Institute of Public Health of Quebec on an anonymous basis—that is, without revealing the person’s identity: the physician reports their own name and license number, as well as the person’s health insurance number, if available. The information provided can therefore only be used for statistical purposes and not to monitor the person living with HIV, since it is not identified by name. 

MADOs (maladies à déclaration obligatoire in French) are designated by the Minister of Health. They may include poisonings, infections, or diseases that pose a risk of causing further cases in the population. They are medically recognized as having the potential to cause an epidemic if left uncontrolled, and they require vigilance on the part of public health authorities so that action can be taken to prevent or control the emergence of new cases. 

Healthcare professionals authorized to make a diagnosis or laboratories that identify a notifiable disease are responsible for reporting such diseases. They must provide the following information to the relevant Director of Public Health within 48 hours: 

• The name of the poisoning, infection, or disease; 
• The first and last name, gender, occupation, date of birth, address, phone number, and health insurance number of the person covered by the report; 
• The date of onset of the disease or symptoms; 
• The date samples were collected for laboratory analysis and the names of the laboratories that will perform the analyses, if applicable; 
• The first and last name, professional license number, and phone number of the person making the report; 
• In the case of a report of a disease or infection that may be transmitted through blood or organ or tissue donation, information regarding blood, organ, or tissue donations made by the affected person and information regarding blood, blood products, organs, or tissues received by the affected person; 
• In the case of a report of syphilis, an indication of whether it is primary, secondary, latent (lasting less than or more than one year), congenital, tertiary, or another form. 

A person’s HIV status is personal and confidential information. This sensitive information may not be disclosed without the consent of the person concerned, unless required by law. 

The law therefore specifies certain situations in which a person living with HIV is required to disclose their HIV status, including: 

• When applying for insurance; 
• Before engaging in sexual intercourse that involves a “realistic possibility of transmission” of HIV (see the page on Criminalization of HIV); 
• During the immigration process to Canada, particularly when a medical examination is required and the person does not already know their status. 
• In rare cases, when job duties warrant it (see the “Confidentiality” page for more information) 

Disclosure, therefore, has nothing to do with the concept of MADO. Except in the situations described above, a person living with HIV has no legal obligation to disclose their HIV status. 

Furthermore, a third party may not disclose another person’s HIV status without that person’s consent under any circumstances. Such disclosure could constitute an invasion of privacy, giving rise to legal remedies in the courts of general jurisdiction.