Executive Director, Euthanasia Prevention Coalition
Technically proroguing parliament "kills" the legislation that has not yet passed. Canadian tradition permits the government, after prorogation, to receive approval to return legislation to the legislative track that it was on before. The government may abandon certain legislation that they have decided does not fit within their legislative direction.
Why is Canada expanding its euthanasia law?
In September 2019, Justice Baudouin, from Quebec, struck down the requirement in Canada's euthanasia law that a person's natural death must be reasonably foreseeable. The federal government did not appeal the decision.
I reported that striking down the "terminal illness" requirement in the law opened the door to euthanasia for psychiatric conditions (Link).
On February 24, Canada's federal government introduced Bill C-7 to expand the euthanasia law.
Bill C-7 goes much further than the Quebec Superior Court decision.
What does Bill C-7 do?
1. Bill C-7 removes the requirement in the law that a person’s natural death be reasonably foreseeable to qualify for assisted death. Therefore, people who are not terminally ill can die by euthanasia. The Quebec court decision only required this amendment to the law, but Bill C-7 goes further.
2. Bill C-7 would permit a doctor or nurse practitioner to lethally inject a person who is incapable of consenting, if that person was previously approved for assisted death. This contravenes the Supreme Court of Canada Carter decision which stated that only competent people could die by euthanasia.
3. Bill C-7 waives the ten-day waiting period if a person's natural death is deemed to be reasonably foreseeable. Thus a person could request death by euthanasia on a "bad day" and die the same day. Studies prove that the “will to live” fluctuates.
Recent statistics indicate that in 65.7% of MAID deaths, the 10-day waiting period was followed. In the 34.3% of MAID deaths where the waiting period was shortened, most practitioners (84.4%) cited imminent loss of the patient’s capacity to consent as the primary reason, with imminent death cited in 45.4% of these cases.
Bill C-7 does not need to eliminate the 10 day waiting period because the current law allows the doctor or nurse practitioner to waive the waiting period.
For instance, in November 2016 EPC reported the case of a woman who may only have had a bladder infection who died by euthanasia. Even in this case, soon after legalization, the doctor waved the 10 day waiting period.
4. Bill C-7 creates a two track law. A person whose natural death is deemed to be reasonably foreseeable has no waiting period while a person whose natural death is deemed to not be reasonably foreseeable would have a 90 day waiting period. This provision in the law will be challenged in court.
5. Bill C-7 falsely claims to prevent euthanasia for people with mental illness. The euthanasia law permits MAiD for people who are physically or psychologically suffering that is intolerable to the person and that cannot be relieved in a way that the person considers acceptable. However, mental illness, which is not defined in the law, is considered a form of psychological suffering.
- Sign the Petition: Reject euthanasia Bill C-7 (Link).
- Five reasons to oppose euthanasia and assisted suicide (Link).
- More than 15,000 Canadians have died by euthanasia (MAiD) (Link).
- Euthanasia deaths continue to increase in Ontario Canada. (Link).
- Does Bill C-7 prevent euthanasia for mental illness? (Link).
- Stop the extension of euthanasia by Bill C-7 (Link).
- Physically healthy depressed man died by euthanasia in BC (Link).
- Ontario doctor experiences abuse of euthanasia law (Link).
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