Ottawa urged to ban MAiD access for mental illness

Euthanasia prevention advocates are calling on Parliamentarians to support a Conservative bill that would ban allowing mental illnesses to be used as the sole criterion for Canadians dying.

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Euthanasia prevention advocates are calling on Parliamentarians to support a Conservative bill that would ban allowing mental illnesses to be used as the sole criterion for Canadians dying through the government-sanctioned euthanasia program. Canada is set to allow mental illness to be the only factor to access Medical Assistance in Dying in early 2027.

Anti-euthanasia advocates, including the executive director of the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition, Alex Schadenberg, combat veteran Kelsi Sheren, Alicia Duncan—the daughter of a MAiD recipient and a family physician—all called on parliamentarians to support the proposed law during a press conference on Friday.

Bill C-218, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (medical assistance in dying), is a private members’ bill sponsored in June by Conservative MP Tamara Jansen, which would legislate that a mental disorder is “not a grievous and irremediable medical condition,” preventing it from being used as a criterion for Canadians to access government euthanasia.

The advocates stated that mental illness can never be considered “irremediable” as in many cases, people who were once suicidal find the will to live, and in some cases move past mental illness symptoms.

Schadenberg shared a letter written by a woman named Catherine who said that she would have gone through with the government’s euthanasia program had she been allowed to, based on the Liberals’ planned change to extend MAiD to those suffering from mental illness. She said her life turned around after finishing school, getting a full-time job, and getting married. Her life changed so much that she no longer requires medication for a list of mental illnesses she once had.

He said there were “many Catherines” in Canada, and legislating that mental illness can’t be used as a sole criterion for MAiD would “protect” those like her who might believe death is the only way forward.

“We’re really hoping that members of parliament look at this issue properly and recognize the victims who might be dying by euthanasia, if this is not passed, and who really need proper care and not death,” he said.

Sheren called out the government for already expanding its euthanasia program beyond the “narrow, humane, safeguarded system” it was billed as when it was first introduced.

Health Canada released its annual report on the MAiD program this week. The report noted that 4.4 per cent of the 16,499 people euthanized by the government in 2024 were part of “track 2” which was introduced under the Liberal-NDP coalition government in 2021. Under Track 2 euthanasia is available for individuals whose natural deaths are not “reasonably foreseeable.”

“The treatments that could actually save lives, like advanced therapies for PTSD, depression and chronic trauma, remain trapped behind bureaucracy, fear and political cowardice. Other nations are pioneering recovery, while Canada is pioneering resignation,” Sheren said. “While this is happening, closed-door meetings are already underway to expand MAiD even further in 2027, absolutely no transparency, no accountability, no consent from people who have risked their lives.”

Sheren became involved in advocating against euthanasia after Veterans—a population susceptible to mental illness—came forward saying they were offered death while asking for support. She noted that much of Canada’s political class is pushing to expand MAiD access, citing recent emails unveiled through a Freedom of Information request that exposed Green Party Leader Elizabeth May and two BC NDP MLAs advocating for the expansion of MAiD access to an illegal immigrant.

“A nation shows its value by how it treats its most vulnerable and right now, Canada is sending a message to the world: your life is optional, and your suffering is inconvenient. This cannot continue, not for veterans, not with people with disabilities, and not for anybody else,” Sheren said. “Canada has chosen a different path, one where treatment has become termination, where community replaces isolation, and where hope is considered a responsibility, not an afterthought.”

Alicia Duncan shared a story about the controversial death of her mother, who was exhibiting mental health symptoms but was deemed to be in an “irremediable condition.” She was released from a psych ward and within hours accessed MAiD.

“There is no test, no scan, no metric that can say a person’s recovery is impossible. Autonomy, the word we hear so often, does not survive in a system where the alternatives are untreated, suffering, homelessness, poverty, extensive wait lists for specialists, emergency room closures or disability payments that do not cover rent,” Duncan said. “Autonomy collapses when people are forced to choose between pain and death because care simply does not exist.”

The annual MAiD report also revealed that 692 individuals withdrew their MAiD request after being approved to die, a 20 per cent increase in those choosing life from the previous year.

The most common reason MAiD recipients gave for choosing life was that they found other means to relieve their suffering, including medicines. Of those who changed their minds about being euthanized, eight per cent of those who backed out said they had changed their minds about dying through the program because “important” people in their lives were against euthanasia.

Bill C-218 received its first hour of parliamentary debate on Friday. The bill is set to be debated again in February and voted on as early as March. Anti-euthanasia advocates urge supporters of the bill to contact their MPs and ask them to vote to pass it in Parliament.