1907 CHAPTER 12. An Act respecting Public Health. (Assented to March 15, 1907.) HIS MAJESTY, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Alberta, enacts as follows: SHORT TITLE. Short title Interpretation Provincial board Local board Municipality Health district Provincial health officer Medical health officer Executive officer Street 1. This Act may be cited as "The Public Health Act." INTERPRETATION. 2. Where the following expressions or words occur in this Act or the schedule thereto or in any rules or regulations to be made under or confirmed by this Act, they shall be construed in the manner hereinafter mentioned unless the context otherwise requires: 1. "Provincial Board" shall mean the provincial board of health as constituted and organized under this Act; 2. "Local Board" shall mean and include the local board of health of each municipality, health district or outlying districts; 3. "Municipality" shall mean any city or town; 4. "Health District" shall mean any village or local improvement district or other portion of the province organized as a health district by the Lieutenant Governor in Council under the provisions of this Act; 5. "Provincial Health Officer" shall mean the provincial health officer appointed under the provisions of this Act; 6. "Medical Health Officer" shall mean and include the medical health officer appointed under the provisions of this Act within the limits of the jurisdiction of any municipality, health district or outlying district; 7. "Executive Officer" shall mean and include all persons who are officers appointed by proper and competent authority for the enforcement of the provisions of this Act, or any other law, order or regulation for the time being in force relating to the public health; 8. "Street" shall mean and include every highway, road, square, lane, mews, court, alley and passage, whether a thoroughfare or not; 9. "House" shall mean any house and include schools, fac- House tories and other buildings, huts and tents for human habitation, whether such use is permanent or temporary and whether the same are stationary or movable, and outhouses used for any purpose; 10. "Minister" shall mean the minister of the department Minister administering this Act; 11. "Owner" shall mean the person for the time being Owner receiving the rent of the lands or premises in connection with which the word is used, whether on his own account or as an agent or trustee for any other person, or who would so receive the same if such lands or premises were let; 12. "Householder" means the person for the time being as between the actual occupants thereof, the occupant in charge of any premises, whether as owner, tenant, agent or otherwise howsoever; Householder Contagious or disease 13. Where the words "contagious or infectious disease" occur it shall be taken to mean the following diseases, namely: infectious small-pox, chicken-pox, diphtheria, measles, German measles, whooping-cough, mumps, glanders, together with such other diseases as the provincial board of health may with the approval of the Lieutenant Governor from time to time declare. to be contagious or infectious diseases; 14. "Outlying District" shall mean and include any part outlying or portion of the province not included within the corporate districts limits of any municipality or health district organized into an outlying district under the provisions of this Act; 15. "Supreme Court" means the Supreme Court of Alberta; Supreme Court 16. "Registered Medical Practitioner" means a medical Registered practitioner duly qualified to practise medicine or surgery in medical the province. practitioner PROVINCIAL BOARD OF HEALTH. board, organ 3. There shall be a board of health in the province to be Provincial known as the provincial board of health, and shall consist ization and of a secretary of the board who shall be the provincial health membership officer of the province, and shall be appointed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council during pleasure at an annual salary to be appropriated by the Legislature for this purpose, and four other members to be appointed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council from time to time for a period of one year, retiring members being eligible for reappointment. There shall be a chairman of the board who is not the secretary, who shall be appointed by a majority of the members present other than the secretary, and who shall hold office for one year, and until his successor shall be appointed. In case of the absence of the chairman from.any meeting the board other than the sec Inspection of public institutions Duties of secretary Remuneration of members Payment of salaries and expenses Provincial board holds each year Quorum, rules and by-laws retary shall appoint one of its members present who is not the secretary to act as chairman during the meeting. 4. The provincial health officer shall inspect all public and charitable institutions, such inspections to be made in accordance with such rules and regulations as may from time to time be prescribed by the minister. 5. The secretary shall perform the duties prescribed by this Act or required by the board, shall keep a record of the transactions of the board, and shall, so far as is practicable communicate with other provincial or state boards and with the local boards of health and health officers within the province and with municipal councils and other public bodies for the purpose of acquiring or disseminating information concerning the public health, and shall also prepare an annual report in relation to vital statistics which shall be forwarded to the Lieutenant Governor in Council on the second Tuesday in January in each year, and shall perform such other duties and functions relating to vital statistics and otherwise as may be assigned to him by the Lieutenant Governor in Council. 6. The members of the board other than the provincial health officer, shall be paid such per diem allowance while attending meetings of the board or in committee thereof as may be determined by the Lieutenant Governor in Council and shall receive their actual travelling and other necessary expenses while employed in the business of the board. 7. The salaries and expenses of the provincial board shall be paid out of such moneys as may from time to time be appropriated by the Legislature for that purpose and the expenses of the medical health officers and executive officers referred to in section 31, (1), (2), (3), may be paid out of moneys so appropriated or out of the moneys to arise out of the levying of any special rate or tax under the power by section 29 conferred as the Lieutenant Governor in Council may direct. 8. The provincial board shall meet three times a year and three meetings at such other times and at such places as may be fixed from time to time by the resolution of the board. Three members shall be a quorum for the transaction of business and they shall have the power to make and adept rules and by-laws regulating the transaction of business and may provide therein for the appointment of subcommittees to whom they may delegate authority and power for the work committed to them. General objects and functions of provincial board 9. The provincial board of health shall take cognizance of the interests of health and life among the people of the province; they shall especially study the vital statistics of the province and shall endeavour to make an intelligent and profitable use of the collected records of death and of sickness among the people; they shall make sanitary investigations and inquiries respecting the causes of disease and especially of epidemics; the causes of mortality and the effects of localities, employments, conditions, habits and other circumstances upon the health of the people; they shall make such suggestions and take such steps as to the prevention and suppression of contagious and infectious diseases as they shall deem most effective and proper and as will prevent and limit, as far as possible the rise and spread of disease; they shall inquire into the measures which are being taken by the local boards for the limitation of any dangerous contagious or infectious disease or the performance of any duty through powers conferred upon said local boards by this board or any other Act and, should it appear that no efficient measures are being taken or that the said powers or duties are not being exercised, it shall be the duty of the provincial board, in the interests of the public health, to require the local board to exercise and enforce any of the said powers which, in the opinion of the provincial board, the urgency of the demands; and in any such case where the local board, after request by the provincial board, neglect or refuse to exercise its powers, the provincial board may, with the approval of the minister, exercise and enforce at the expense of the municipality or organized portions of health districts any of the powers of local boards which under the circumstances the provincial board may consider necessary and the said board shall, when required or when it deems best, advise officers of the Government and local boards of health in regard to the public health and as to the means to be adopted to secure the same, and as to the location, drainage, water supply, disposal of excreta, heating and ventilation of any public institution or building. of provincial (2) The provincial board may, subject to the approval and General powers with the consent of the Lieutenant Governor in Council, board make and issue such rules and orders and regulations, not conflicting with any law in force in the province, as the said board may deem necessary for the prevention, treatment, mitigation and suppression of disease and may, from time to time, subject to the like approval and consent as aforesaid, alter or repeal any such rules, orders and regulations therefor and the said board may by such rules, orders and regulations provide for and regulate: (a) The management, maintenance, functions, duties and (b) The prevention and removal of nuisances; (c) The cleansing, purifying, ventilating, plumbing and charitable institutions, buildings and places of assembly, railway stations, carriages and cars, as well as other public conveyances, by the owners and occupiers and persons having the care and ordering thereof; (d) The inspection of hospitals, gaols, orphanages, reformatories, houses, churches, schools, buildings and places of assembly, railway stations, carriages and cars and all other public conveyances; (e) The construction, maintenance, cleansing and disinfection of all drains, sewerage systems and sewers, and systems for sewage disposal, the location, cleansing and disinfection of water closets, cesspools, privies and pigstys, the location, cleansing and disinfection of wells and the cleansing of streets and yards; (f) The method of the carrying on of all noxious and offersive trades or business, and the summary abatement of any nuisance or injury to the public health arising there from or liable to arise therefrom; (g) The inspection, licensing, method of construction, furnishing, equipping and maintaining, cleansing and disinfecting all slaughter houses and other places in which animals are killed and their meat prepared for sale or to be used for food, and all canneries, fish houses, smokehouses and warehouses in which fish are cured, packed or prepared for sale or to be used as food and all starch factories, dye works or factories in which blood, offal or skins or paraffine, tallow, soap or fertilizers or gas are worked up; (h) The interment of the dead and the conduct of funerals; (i) The isolation or placing in any hospital or building provided for quarantine or isolation purposes or to any other proper place of any person having any infectious or contagious disease or any disease dangers to the public health; and the disposition of all conveyances or parties that have been exposed to a contagious or infectious disease or person who are living in unhealthy houses or congested, unhealthy or infected localities; (1) The reporting to a medical health officer by every medical practitioner of any person under his treatment for any infectious or contagious disease or any disease dangerous to the public health; (k) The vaccination of all children residing within the province; (1) The vaccination of all persons entering or residing in the province not already vaccinated or not sufficiently protected by previous vaccination; |