Summary#
Bill 147, Benji’s Law (Ensuring Anaphylaxis, Asthma and Epilepsy Friendly Overnight Camps), 2026, would create a new Ontario law. Its goal is to strengthen protection at overnight recreational camps from anaphylaxis and other life-threatening allergic reactions.
- The Minister must review regulations made under the Health Protection and Promotion Act and, after the review, recommend any amendments the Minister considers appropriate.
- Possible amendments may cover camp policies, emergency response and timely epinephrine use, staff and volunteer training, access to auto-injectors, individual emergency plans, allergen management, and incident records. The bill does not require every item to be included.
- The Minister must consider updating allergy guidance and must consult Food Allergy Canada, the Ontario Camps Association, and other people or organizations the Minister considers appropriate.
- The bill applies to overnight camps with sleeping and eating facilities for at least five people under 18 or people with special needs. It excludes day camps.
- Despite the bill’s title, its operative provisions address allergies and anaphylaxis, not asthma or epilepsy.
What it means for you#
- Campers and families: This bill would not itself create new camp safety rules or guarantee specific protections. Any regulatory changes would come later.
- Camp operators: The bill does not directly require camps to change their policies, training, food practices, or emergency plans.
- The Minister: Must start the review within a “reasonable time” after the Act comes into force, recommend any amendments considered appropriate, consider updating guidance, and consult the named groups and others.
- The bill would come into force on Royal Assent. It does not set a deadline for completing the review or making recommendations.
Money#
No cost estimate is in the supplied material. No publicly available information.
- The bill requires a ministerial review and consultation but gives no staffing or budget estimate.
What is unclear#
- The current regulations under the Health Protection and Promotion Act were not supplied, so I could not verify what camp requirements already exist or how much of the proposed review would change them.
- “Reasonable time” is not defined, and the bill sets no deadline for recommendations.
- The bill does not require the government to adopt the Minister’s recommendations or set a deadline for any later regulatory changes.
- The bill does not specify how the review will work, how the Minister will choose other consultees, or whether there will be public reporting.
- The bill’s title refers to asthma and epilepsy, but the text does not set out measures for either condition.
Case for#
- A review could identify whether existing camp regulations need stronger protections for life-threatening allergic reactions.
- The bill lists areas the review may consider, including emergency response, epinephrine access, staff training, food practices, and individual medical plans.
- Required consultation with allergy and camp organizations could bring relevant experience into the review.
- Updating guidance to reflect current medical and public health information could help camps understand recommended allergy practices.
Case against#
- The bill requires a review and recommendations, not new safety rules. The Minister may recommend only the changes the Minister considers appropriate.
- Without deadlines for finishing the review or adopting changes, stronger protections could be delayed or not result from this bill.
- The bill does not specify how camps, families, or campers would be involved in the review.
- The title may lead readers to expect measures for asthma and epilepsy, but the bill’s operative provisions do not address them.