Alberta introducing integrated driver licences with health card number on July 2

Alberta introducing integrated driver licences with health card number on July 2

Citizen marker will also be included on redesigned licence

Alberta will start to roll out new driver's licences starting July 2 that will include an individual’s health card number, finally eliminating the paper cards that have been the bane of Albertans for decades.

The cards will also display information about a driver’s citizenship — a controversial move announced last August — which the province says will make it easier to determine who is eligible for government services and who is allowed to vote.

Drivers will have to show proof they are legally allowed to be in Canada when they apply for a new card or renew an existing licence. They will also need to show their health card if they want their number added to the card.

The cost of the card remains the same.

New design removes the dinosaur that was a feature of the current design released in 2018. It will be replaced with an oil derrick and a wild rose, the provincial flower. The words “Alberta Strong and Free” are written on the back.

Successive Alberta governments have promised to replace the flimsy paper cards for years but balked at the price.

Last year, Diane McLeod, Alberta's information and privacy commissioner, raised concerns about adding health care numbers to driver's licences.

She said the Registrar of Motor Vehicles isn't subject to any privacy legislation, and having the health card numbers of licences could increase the risk of fraud.

The government said attaching health care numbers to driver's licences would reduce the risk of fraud because the number is connected to ID with a photo.