BURST
Albertans will have a new option to carry government-issued documents inside their personal mobile devices with the launch of the Alberta Wallet on Friday.
To help modernize government service delivery in the province, the first document that can be added to wallets will be a mobile health card, the first of its kind in Canada, touted as a faster and more convenient way to interact with the health-care system.
“Albertans deserve better, faster and smarter services,” said Premier Danielle Smith. “That’s why we’re launching this optional tool to supplement Albertans’ existing paper health cards.
“If you choose to use the new Alberta Wallet, you remain in control of your personal information, which will stay private and only accessible to you.”
In a media event at the McDougall Centre on Friday, Smith said the government’s goal is to use advances in technology to make life simpler and more convenient for Albertans.
“We’re going to be able to address the ongoing embarrassment of the flimsy paper Alberta health care cards,” Smith said. “The new mobile health card is the first of its kind in Canada, and functions exactly like the existing paper ones.”
Technology and Innovation Minister Nate Glubish said 1.8 million people have an Alberta.ca account.
To access the wallet, Albertans aged 14 and older will need a verified Alberta.ca account and a MyHealth Records to add their health card.
“We’ll be essentially leveraging some of the existing infrastructure that many Albertans are using today, and giving them a new tool to embed their health card on their phone,” Glubish said.
Parents and guardians will be able to add their children’s cards into their own Alberta Wallets, and the same function will also be available for spouses and inter-dependants to share health cards.
The digital health card will serve as valid proof of health insurance coverage throughout Alberta, and can be presented at hospitals, clinics and other medical facilities.
Future accommodations planned for additional government documents
Primary and Preventative Health Services Minister Adriana LaGrange said the new card will help give Albertans instant access to their health information.
“This innovation helps providers deliver care faster and more efficiently, ensuring Albertans receive the treatment they need when they need it,” LaGrange said.
In the future, Glubish said the Alberta Wallet will be able to store additional Alberta-issued documents.
“Some examples like that could be a potential mobile driver’s licence, other fishing and hunting permits, marriage certificates, birth and death certificates, diplomas or transcripts from our education and post-secondary system, and journeymen and trade certificates,” he said. “There’s a lot of options where we can help give Albertans the option and convenience of having all of these government issued and certificates in one place and carry it in their pocket.”
Although it is not available on Day 1, Glubish said compatibility with Apple and Google mobile wallets is still under development.
“You’ll need the Alberta Wallet, but there will be a future option if you prefer to just keep everything in your Apple Wallet or Google Wallet,” he said. “That will be an option down the road.”
In terms of security and privacy protection, Glubish said both the Alberta Wallet and mobile health card were created using state-of-the-art encryption and security protocols.
Both platforms are optional and will never be mandatory, he added.
“Nobody is going to force you to get rid of your paper card today, and we will absolutely stick with our commitment to get the physical merged driver’s licence and ID cards with the health card, so that if you prefer the physical card, you can have that,” Glubish said. “You’re in control. You choose the way you want to use your card.”
People shifting to the digital card will also have control on how they use the document.
“I wanted to be 100 per cent sure that when we offered the service, that only the document owner, the Albertan who has that health card, knows when and where that information is shared,” he said. “The Government of Alberta, by design, cannot track or monitor where that document was used, and that is super important to me.”
Along with the mobile health card, LaGrange announced a new health card renewal process.
“Regular renewal confirms that only eligible Alberta residents do have access to insured physician and hospital services, helping limit misuses and manage costs responsibly,” LaGrange said. “It also addresses a recommendation from the auditor general to strengthen our ongoing eligibility processes.
“Alberta’s government is delivering on its promise. Modern, convenient health cards that benefit Albertans, support health-care providers and strengthen our system.”
New integrated plastic identity card in 2026
The mobile health card will be followed by the availability of a new integrated plastic identity card in 2026.
“Albertans have told us that they have concerns about the durability and convenience of the current paper health card,” LaGrange said. “We agree. It’s time for a better solution.”
The new physical card will amalgamate driver’s licences and health-care cards into one identity document.
Since the province needed to make major changes to accommodate the additional information that is on the card alongside its redesign, the new card is targeted to release by the end of 2026.
“We’re trying to get rid of these things,” said Smith as she held up a mangled paper health card. “It’s dog-eared on both sides and it doesn’t have my address.”
Smith said the mobile health card and new physical card solve problems associated with traditional paper health cards.
“The next step is making sure that we’ve got a comprehensive card that is durable, a plastic card that is going to be synced up with the driver’s licence, so all of that is going to be in one place,” Smith said. “We’ll have more to say about that when it unrolls next year.”
The Alberta Wallet is available on the Google Play and Apple App stores, with more information available on alberta.ca/alberta-wallet