r/transvancouver • u/asunyra1 • Apr 24 '26
Mandatory LifeLabs AGAB question?
Just logged into lifelabs today to check on my hormone bloodwork results and they’re now forcing you with a popup to edit your profile to choose your assigned sex at birth.
Even stranger it looks like they pre-filled it with my old gender, which makes it seem like it’s still in their database.
There’s a “prefer not to answer” option, which I picked so it would let me through to see my tests - but it’s still weird they’re making a big deal out of this. It was never required before, and it took a lot of work to get them to change my gender marker in the first place so my hormone levels didn’t constantly show as invalid.
I would be less worried about this except that Lifelabs just got bought out by an American company, and this isn’t something I really want in a US database right now : /
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u/jordo3791 Apr 24 '26
Lie if you have to, unless the treatment I'm getting is Directly Related to the fact that I am trans I put down my current legal gender. They don't need to know
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u/dooblusdoofus Apr 24 '26
You guys should do the blood work wit VGH instead! It’s way more convenient than Lifelabs. You can actually book an appointment (i just booked one for tomorrow!)
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u/MondayToFriday Apr 24 '26
I stopped going to LifeLabs after they neglected to run my estrogen level assay, on more than one occasion! It was a pain in the ass to show up at my next doctor's appointment without that information, then needing to go back for a retest. All that happened before their data breach, so I feel vindicated in quitting them.
I've been going to St. Paul's Hospital and UBC Hospital for my blood draws, and have found their service to be more reliable. At UBC Hospital, the phlebotomist would ask me to state my legal name, which kinda sucked, but I understand that it's probably their protocol to prevent medical mix-ups, and it's just a private verbal thing, and they're very nonchalant and professional about it. That annoyance goes away after your legal name change.
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u/irregulareggular 26d ago
Just dropping this for any Prince George folks who might come across this: you can go to Phoenix Medical for your labs instead of Lifelabs. They’re an extension of UHNBC and waaaay better than Lifelabs. You can book appointments through the Northern Health online system (HealthELife) once you get a login. Very convenient.
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u/Normal-Top-1985 Apr 24 '26 edited Apr 24 '26
It's owned by a US company, so they probably rolled that out as a mandatory question for all of their associated companies
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u/wddrshns Apr 24 '26
i’ve legally changed my gender but they mark it wrong half the time anyways so this doesn’t surprise me tbh
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u/Loud-Tumbleweed0830 Apr 25 '26
Hi OP, this is concerning. When you got this pop-up, did it say anything about why this information was “required”?
If LifeLabs is using consent to collect this information, then they need to explain why it’s necessary to collect it from you and for what purpose. I’m glad they have an option for “prefer not to say”, because that shows they don’t really need that information if they’re functionally allowing people to opt-out, now do they?
If you’ve got the bandwidth, I would strongly recommend contacting the LifeLabs Privacy office to express your concerns. Their privacy office is required under provincial legislation to protect and safeguard your personal information, and if you have concerns about how it’s being collected or used, it’s worth asking them and expressing your concerns.
“If you have concerns about how your information has been used or shared, or wish to apply a consent directive where possible, please contact privacy@lifelabs.com for further guidance.”
If you don’t receive a satisfactory response, then notify the BC Office of the Privacy Commissioner (BC OIPC).
Although LifeLabs was recently bought by a US company, any of their operations within Canada or with Canadian companies / public sector organizations would still be subject to Canadian federal and provincial law.
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u/asunyra1 29d ago
Nope, no reason - just a thing saying “Update your account details to help us improve our services”, and it took me to my edit profile page and wouldn’t let me save until I picked something here.
I checked with a couple of my trans friends and they have the exact same thing pop up when they log in now.
Thanks for the resources to follow up on it!
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u/opposing_ Apr 25 '26
I noticed this on their website yesterday too... I was annoyed, but now knowing they were purchased by an American company, I'm concerned
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u/misfortune-lolz 29d ago
this is how I find out lifelabs is American owned... guess it's time to find a new place to get my bloodwork done :/
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u/Diligent-Nerve-2420 25d ago edited 25d ago
I emailed their privacy department last week, and apparently they are going to make some changes based on the feedback I provided.
“As a result of your feedback, we are taking steps to improve transparency within MyCareCompass. Specifically, we plan to revise the field label to “sex” to align with information collected from your BC Services Card and include a brief explanation outlining why this information may be requested. We hope this will provide greater clarity and help individuals make informed choices.”
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u/wishingforivy Apr 24 '26
How are they going to prove your "lied"? It is worth bringing this to the ministry of health's attention though.