Dear Friend,
As you may already know, doctor-assisted suicide and euthanasia became legal in Canada in 2016. Under the 2016 Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) law, an adult could ask a doctor to end their life if they had a serious and incurable illness or disability,
and their natural death was reasonably foreseeable. This is known as Track 1 MAiD and was intended to help people experiencing intractable pain in their last days.
Unfortunately, MAiD eligibility has expanded rapidly beyond what was first allowed in 2016. What many Canadians still don’t know is that, in 2021, the MAiD law was changed to make adults with illness or disability
who are not dying eligible to ask to be euthanized. This is known as Track 2 MAiD and has been applied to conditions like loss of sight or hearing, frailty, and diabetes.
Along with many disability advocacy groups and medical professionals, the EFC has long expressed our deep concern that the current MAiD laws will end the lives of Canadians in their vulnerable moments. And there are many accounts of exactly this.
Some people with disabilities or chronic illnesses are choosing death, not because their medical conditions cannot be managed, but because despair over the lack of adequate care and social supports lead them to request it. In 2023, 622 Canadians were euthanized by Track 2 MAiD. I wonder how many of these deaths could have been avoided if people would have had the care and support they needed.
The expansion of MAiD for those living with disabilities and chronic medical conditions is already extremely problematic. But the 2021 legislation also included a provision that would allow
people whose only medical condition is mental illness to ask their doctors to help end their lives. This expansion is set to come into effect in March 2027, at which time the government believes Canada will be “ready” to handle such requests. But it’s simply not possible to ever be ready.
First, one of the key eligibility criteria is that a person’s illness be incurable. But experts agree that it’s not possible to determine whether a mental illness is incurable or to predict that an individual’s mental illness will never respond to treatments and supports. Suicidality can also be a symptom of some mental illnesses. The risk of causing premature deaths is too great to allow MAiD for those with mental illness alone.
Secondly, proper safeguards have not been built into the law to protect people making life and death decisions in moments of vulnerability, desperation and hopelessness. Unlike in Belgium and the Netherlands, where doctors are not allowed to take a patient’s life if there are still treatments that have not yet been tried, Canada doesn’t require that patients exhaust all reasonable treatments before seeking death. They need only be informed of treatment options.
As well, like many living with physical disabilities, individuals living with psychiatric conditions often already struggle with marginalization and obtaining the services and support needed to live well and to thrive. It is unconscionable to offer euthanasia, rather than proper care and supports, to Canadians struggling with their mental health. It should not be easier to get MAiD (which is covered by provincial/territorial health insurance) than it is to access affordable care and treatments.
Every human is created in the image of God (Gen 1:26) and is loved and honoured by God as His creature. Our lives have meaning and are precious to God, regardless of our physical or mental capacity. The taking of a life stands in direct opposition to God’s command (Ex 20:13). Instead, God compels us to love our neighbour (Rom 13:9) – to care for, serve, and improve the quality of life of those who are suffering, and to share their burdens – so that they choose life, not death.
MAiD for mental illness alone will take effect in March 2027 unless a bill is passed to stop it. That means there’s only one and a half years left to reverse the law.
This page tells you about an important bill that would put a stop to MAiD for mental illness.
We need your help urgently in three areas. Please pray for our elected officials. And please contact your MP and ask them to support Bill C-218. Finally, if the Spirit so moves you, please make a donation today in support of our efforts on Parliament Hill. Gifts of any amount would be warmly welcomed and greatly appreciated.
Thank you for standing together with us in witness to God’s good ways in this troubling issue.
Sincerely,
Dr. David Guretzki
President & CEO