B.C. says Mental Health Act changes intended to help nurses, but critics concerned – CBC
Changes prompt more confusion than clarity, UBC associate professor says
Nov 24, 2025
B.C. Premier David Eby has announced proposed changes to the Mental Health Act that he says would protect health-care workers providing involuntary care from facing legal action.
This comes as the province is facing a charter challenge to the act, over a provision that groups say denies patients the ability to consent to treatment.
“As we get closer to the decision date, there is some reasonable anxiety among the frontline health workers that if this case is successful in overturning that provision, that they won’t be protected,” said Eby.
While the premier says these changes are necessary to make sure health-care workers are clearly protected from liability, some in the industry have raised questions about why this change is necessary — as they say the act already covers liability protection.
