Medically Assisted Dying In Canada - An Update

In April 2017, the CBC reported that over 1,300 people in Canada have died with medical assistance since the Criminal Code was amended in 2016 to legalize medical assistance in dying ("MAID"). While this statistic points to the importance of MAID for many Canadians, the new legislation has not settled the ongoing debate concerning the right to die. Recent litigation on various fronts has highlighted continuing controversies, including questions about the role of medical professionals in MAID, limitations on who will have access to medically assisted dying, and ambiguity in the criteria for access.

The Current Law

On June 17, 2016, Parliament enacted Bill C-14, amending the Criminal Code to legalize MAID. Under the new legislation, MAID, which includes both assisted suicide and voluntary euthanasia, is legal if the criteria and procedural safeguards set out in s.242.2 of the Criminal Code are followed by the doctors or nurses involved.

Under S. 241.2(1) of the Criminal Code, a person may receive MAID if he or she:

Is at least 18 years of age and capable of making decisions with respect to his or her health; Has requested MAID voluntarily and not as a result of external pressure or undue influence; Has provided informed consent to receive MAID, after having been informed of other options to alleviate suffering, including palliative care; Is eligible for publicly funded health care services in Canada; and Has a grievous and irremediable medical condition. Under S. 241.2(2) of the Criminal Code, a person has a "grievous and irremediable medical condition" only if they meet all of the following criteria:

they have a serious and incurable illness, disease or disability; they are in an advanced state of irreversible decline in capability; that illness, disease or disability or that state of decline causes them enduring physical or psychological suffering that is intolerable to them and that cannot be relieved under conditions that they consider acceptable; and their natural death has become reasonably foreseeable, taking into account all of their medical circumstances, without a prognosis necessarily having been made as to the specific length of time that they have remaining. Recent Litigation and the Challenges Ahead

Recent litigation highlights key issues surrounding MAID, particularly concerning ambiguity in the criteria for MAID, the role of medical professionals, and the limitations on access to MAID.

In A.B. v. Canada (Attorney General) 2017...