Mental illness will be indefinitely excluded from euthanasia in Canada.

Alex Schadenberg
Executive Director, Euthanasia Prevention Coalition

The report of the Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying (AMAD): Mental Disorder as the Sole Underlying Medical Condition: A Complex and Challenging Conversation Among Canadians was released on June 17, 2026, which is also the 10th Anniversary of the legalization of euthanasia in Canada.

The AMAD Committee decided whether Canada should implement euthanasia for mental disorders as the sole underlying medical condition on March 17, 2027.

The report concluded:

That the Government of Canada amend the Criminal Code to indefinitely exclude persons whose sole underlying medical condition is a mental illness from eligibility for medical assistance in dying.

It is great news that the AMAD Committee has decided that Canada should not implement euthanasia for mental illness, but the battle is not over. 

EPC is intervening in a court case concerning euthanasia for mental illness alone. Claire Brosseau and the euthanasia lobby are seeking an emergency court decision that would approve Brosseau for death by lethal poison based on mental illness alone. In essence, the euthanasia lobby want the court to legislate from the bench by approving that Brosseau be killed.

Even though the parliamentary committee is recommending that euthanasia for mental illness be indefinitely excluded from the law, a judge may legislate from the bench that Brosseau, and in turn others, can be killed by euthanasia based on mental illness alone.

Marcus Powlowski (MP)

Marcus Powlowski, the co-chair of the AMAD Committee a Liberal MP from Thunder Bay - Rainy River, and a physician provided some excellent insight into his reasoning in the report. He wrote:

In addition, although some, perhaps a majority, of MAiD providers assured us of their readiness to provide MAiD for mental illness, and the adequacy of existing safeguards, we also heard disturbing stories of questionable conduct by some MAiD providers. Given what we heard it is hard not to conclude that some providers take an exceedingly expansive interpretation of what constitutes "serious and incurable illness, disease or disability", what constitutes an "advanced state of irreversible decline in capability"; and what constitutes "enduring physical or psychological suffering that is intolerable". Furthermore, we heard stories of doctors with a seemingly cavalier attitude towards ending a life. (page 64)

In his comments, Powlowski appears to agree with EPC that there needs to be a complete review of Canada's euthanasia law. The report recognized our statement to the Parliament Committee on May 5 by including our statement on page 28:

Alexander Schadenberg, of the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition, asserted that, rather than expanding MAID,

Parliament needs to examine how Canada’s euthanasia law is actually functioning. How has the law been implemented? Is it achieving its intended outcomes? Are there abuses of the law based on its original intention? Does the law require amendments?

There were presenters that commented, at the parliamentary committee, on potential abuses associated with Canada's euthanasia law, but only EPC pointed out that parliament was required to provide a complete review of the law in 2020, but it never did. Sign our petition urging Canada's parliament to completely review the law. (Petition Link)

Secondly Powlowski suggests that, based on the language of the law, euthanasia for mental illness should never be permitted. He writes:

But perhaps we will never be ready for MAiD for mental illness as the law is currently written. Numerous very experienced psychiatrists told us of seemingly irremediable cases where for some reason patients, after prolonged periods of seemingly irremediable suffering, the person eventually got better and started to enjoy life again. Furthermore, what evidence there is seems to suggest psychiatrists can not accurately predict who will not get better. (page 64)

EPC supports Bill C-218 which is the private members bill that was introduced by Tamara Jansen (MP) to prevent euthanasia for mental illness alone in Canada.

Now that the Parliamentary Committee on euthanasia has decided to prevent the expansion of euthanasia to mental illness alone, EPC once again urges Canadians to sign our petition in support of Bill C-218. (Petition Link).

The best way to prevent euthanasia for mental illness is for parliament to pass Bill C-218.