We are committed to providing accurate, fact-based information about Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) in Canada.
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Bill C-41 was introduced in Parliament today, bringing two major proposed changes to medical assistance in dying in Canada: permanently excluding mental illness as a sole underlying medical condition and opening the door to advance requests for MAiD.
We've gone through the legislation and broken it down in plain language.
We explain what the bill actually says, how advance requests would work, how it compares with Quebec's existing advance request legislation, and some important concerns we've identified.
If you're wondering what these changes might mean for MAiD in Canada, we've got you covered.
Read our full breakdown here.
maidincanada.substack.com/p/…
Please share to help others understand what's being proposed!
The bill to permanently exclude MAiD when mental illness is the sole underlying medical condition, while allowing advance requests for MAiD (if your province or territory permits them), is being tabled today.
And as expected, it is equal parts simple and devastating.
How can so few words cause so much harm and so much chaos?
People living with mental illnesses are having their rights restricted without adequate justification, while access to advance requests for MAiD will be unequal, fragmented, and subject to the whims of whichever government happens to be in power in each province or territory.
That is not how our rights or access to health care options should work.
We’re working through the exact language of the bill to see if there’s anything unexpected or particularly troubling, beyond its entire purpose, of course.
We’ll post an update if we find anything worth highlighting.
parl.ca/DocumentViewer/en/45…
Well, it seems we severely underestimated the demand for this course!
We had originally paid for 100 seats per month, but within just 24 hours of launching, we had 152 people register for November and another 45 for December. And we haven’t even started promoting the course to the outside groups, organizations, and schools we think might be interested in this resource.
So, we held an emergency executive meeting this morning (aka, we had a chat over breakfast) and decided to upgrade to a higher tier that will double our capacity.
If demand continues to grow, and we have the financial resources and support to keep up, we’ll continue increasing our capacity to ensure that everyone who wants to take this course has the opportunity to do so.
Our goal is simple: to keep this course, and any future courses we develop, free and accessible to everyone.
And a huge thank you to everyone who has liked and shared our course announcement, helping us reach an even wider audience, and to everyone who continues to support the work we're doing. We genuinely couldn't do this without you, and we're incredibly grateful.
maidincanada.substack.com/p/…
Our first free online course is live!
Want a clearer understanding of medical assistance in dying in Canada? Our interactive course explores how the law developed, with a detailed look at eligibility criteria and safeguards.
It takes approximately 45–60 minutes, and you don’t need a healthcare background or any prior knowledge of MAiD.
Already taken the course? Already know MAiD inside out? You can still help others learn by sharing this post. It’s a simple way to help free, accessible MAiD education reach a wider audience.
maidincanada2016.ca/free-mai…
No, MAiD and executions are not the same procedure. We reject that comparison—and Christa Pike’s failed execution in Tennessee illustrates exactly why.
Both involve an IV and an injection. But those superficial similarities do not erase the differences in clinical competence, professional standards, and the response when something goes wrong. Those are essential parts of performing a medical procedure.
If this story has left you worried about MAiD in Canada, your questions deserve answers. What doesn’t deserve acceptance is an argument that ignores the differences and then declares the procedures identical.
Our latest article explains why the comparison fails:
maidincanada.substack.com/p/…
🤖 Made with AI
It looks like we’re going to be getting more information this Tuesday about the federal government’s plans to indefinitely exclude mental illness as the sole underlying condition for MAiD, and what legislation allowing advance requests for MAiD might look like.
We’ll be digging into the details once they’re available and breaking down what it all means. Subscribe to our Substack to get our analysis—everything we publish is free to read.
maidincanada.substack.com
nationalpost.com/news/politi…
We missed posting our quiz at the start of October, but it’s up now!
With the recent news, we thought this would be a good time to explore advance directives, advance requests for MAiD, and the waiver of final consent. How well do you understand the differences?
Test your knowledge at the link below! 👇
maidincanada2016.ca/misinfor…
Based on Justice Minister Sean Fraser's recent announcement, advance requests for MAiD will be available for eligible individuals in the future, but will there be equal access across the country? We have concerns about the federal governments approach to this.
maidincanada.substack.com/p/…
🤖 Made with AI
Perfectly put? This article has enough serious errors that it's title/subtitle are incoherent.
Perfectly put on Canada's out-of-control #euthanasia regime. #assistedsuicide thecritic.co.uk/canada-must-…
You mean the paper with made-up data, written by two engineering professors with no apparent expertise in MAiD, MAiD policy, public health policy, economics, or any other relevant field?
The paper that even its own authors acknowledge is speculative, and whose university distanced itself from some of their statements?
The paper that categorized Indigenous people as those who “cost the government more than they contribute in taxes”?
The one that referred to MAiD providers as “killers” and suggested that money could be saved by training non-medical “lowest-cost hitmen” to provide MAiD?
That paper?
You've just outed yourself as an unserious participant in this conversation. We suspect this isn't the first time.
maidincanada.substack.com/p/…
Here's an article from last year ICYMI. It estimates that savings from #euthanasia in Canada could be as much as $1.273 trillion by 2047. journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.…
How many times can one MP be wrong about MAiD in 2 minutes? We count at least three major errors. How many can you see? This is how disinformation spreads. Does @GarnettGenuis even understand this topic?
facebook.com/share/v/1DvGpj1…
Garbage in, garbage out.
In Parliament’s debate on MAiD for mental illness as a sole condition, MPs like @TamaraJansenMP supplied the garbage in. Justice Minister @SeanFraserMP and the federal government seem to have swallowed it—and served the same garbage back to Canadians as a rationale for policy.
Our latest article examines what happens when misinformation goes in and government policy comes out.
maidincanada.substack.com/p/…
MAiD in Canada retweeted
I really feel like a lot of people haven't experienced or have a naive idea of what end stage dementia looks like.
End stage is someone who can’t speak, can’t recognize their family, can’t swallow safely, is incontinent, bedbound, contracted, and often distressed in ways no one can soothe. Many attack caregivers during diaper changes and strikes/bites during mouth swabs/feeding, with no understanding of whats happening to them. An awful lottery to lose. Others can be peaceful, quiet, and silent while still not understanding what is going on. A kinder lottery to win.
I don't think that everyone with dementia is a 'burden', i don't think that everyone has to think like I do about my own personal boundaries and limits. However, for me, if I received a diagnosis of dementia I would want an advanced directive for MAiD before it reached that end stage, and I believe that many people would choose the same.
My advanced directive would specifically about demented aggression: once i no longer reconginze my family, can't communicate what I need, appear to be suffering, and am regularly hitting, biting, or hurting the people caring for me, despite standard treatments, that's my line.
Can you imagine being told you don’t have the right to be assessed for MAiD based on a mental illness, but not to worry because you can just go kill yourself anyway? That’s what Member of Parliament and practicing doctor Marcus Powlowski said. In a federal report!
As if Claire Elyse Brosseau didn’t have enough to deal with, now she’s had to file a college complaint against Mr. Powlowski.
And let’s not forget: Powlowski was joint chair of the committee whose recommendation to indefinitely exclude mental illness as a sole qualifying condition the federal government has now endorsed.
When we criticize this committee’s bias and judgment, this is exactly the kind of behaviour we mean.
Thank you, Claire, for taking a stand. You should never have had to. We hope Powlowski is appropriately censured and offers a public apology.
idontrememoir.substack.com/p…
MAiD in Canada retweeted
It was so obvious that the gov't was going to punt on MAiD for mental illness. What a colossal waste of everyones time. If the government can break the law (sorry, indefinitely table implementing the law), why even bother with courts at all?!
Federal Government to Indefinitely Extend Mental Illness Exclusion
maidincanada.substack.com/p/…
It looks like tomorrow is going to be a big day in the world of MAiD and mental illness.
Justice Minister Sean Fraser has announced that the federal government will outline its next steps on MAiD tomorrow, following the parliamentary committee’s recommendation that people whose sole underlying medical condition is a mental disorder be excluded indefinitely.
Fraser says the government has heard from a range of perspectives since the committee reported and is now ready to share its path forward.
Also tomorrow, Parliament is scheduled to debate on Bill C-218, Conservative MP Tamara Jansen’s private member’s bill that would permanently exclude people whose sole underlying medical condition is a mental illness from MAiD eligibility. We are also hearing reports that they are set to vote on the bill tomorrow.
So, potentially, two significant developments on the same day.
We’ll be watching both closely and will get something out as soon as we know what the government is proposing and what happens with C-218.
Stay tuned.
cbc.ca/news/politics/governm…
For the 100th time, @Kelsisheren No! A paralytic is not given first! It's given last. After the coma. Why do you keep getting this wrong? You've read the protocol. At least you claim to have read it. Also, nobody has provided a single piece of evidence that pulmonary edema is happening from MAiD. Nobody. Because it's not happening! Stop showing how uninformed you are. It's embarrassing.
