A group of Canadian psychiatrists, including those who have been involved with medical assistance in dying (MAiD), several University and Hospital Department Chairs and several past Canadian Psychiatric Association presidents respond to a recent piece in Impact Ethics that criticized calls to exclude patients with mental health disorders. __________________________________________ A recent piece, “Canadian Psychiatrists Respond ..read more

A group of Canadian psychiatrists involved with medical assistance in dying respond to calls to exclude patients with mental health disorders. __________________________________________ A recent editorial published in the Globe and Mail suggested “it’s time to take a step back on assisted death” (4 November 2023) and various other publications have started to jump on and ..read more

Constance MacIntosh outlines the recommendations of the Special Joint Parliamentary Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) with respect to mature minors accessing MAiD. __________________________________________ In February 2023 the Special Joint Parliamentary Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying released its report. One of their mandates was to assess whether to extend medical assistance in dying ..read more

Daryl Pullman examines a recent article that defends expanded eligibility for medical assistance in dying on questionable grounds of autonomy and harm reduction. __________________________________________ Imagine you are a parent and a ruthless criminal has taken you and your child hostage. The criminal offers you a tragic choice. She will let either you or your child ..read more

Eric Mathison summarizes the final report of the federal Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) as it relates to disability. __________________________________________ No currently legal form of medical assistance in dying has received more attention than cases involving people with disabilities whose deaths are not reasonably foreseeable. When MAiD first became legal, the ..read more

Timothy Holland summarizes the recently released Special Joint Parliamentary report on medical assistance in dying (MAiD) as it applies to advance requests for MAiD. __________________________________________ On February 15, the Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) released their long-anticipated report, “Medical Assistance in Dying in Canada: Choices for Canadians.” The report provides a ..read more

Trudo Lemmens shows how proposals to expand advance requests for medical assistance in dying (MAID) ignore the Supreme Court’s restraint reflected in the Carter decision and reverse constitutional and human rights norms. __________________________________________ While a federal Joint Parliamentary Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying is still supposed to be exploring whether offering MAID based on ..read more

Jocelyn Downie clarifies what the Supreme Court of Canada’s Carter decision actually says (and doesn’t say) about advance requests for MAiD and MAiD for psychiatric illness. __________________________________________ When should individuals be allowed to make an advance request that medical assistance in dying (MAiD) be performed after they have lost their decision-making capacity? Should individuals with ..read more

Jocelyn Downie rebuts misleading claims about the law and medical assistance in dying for mental illness advanced by psychiatrists Mark Sinyor and Ari Zaretsky in a recent Op-Ed. __________________________________________ Medical assistance in dying (MAiD) for persons with mental illness is controversial. In March 2022, a report from an independent expert panel will be delivered to ..read more

Daryl Pullman compares the number of deaths due to MAiD in Canada in 2020 to the dramatically lower number that occurred in California under its end-of-life option. He argues for wider use of the oral protocol in Canada. __________________________________________ According to Health Canada’s Second Annual Report on Medical Assistance in Dying, 7595 people died through ..read more