Canada is considered a world leader in doctor-assisted suicide, or “medical assistance in dying”—MAID, as they’ve termed it.
And yet, just seven years ago, the practice wasn’t even legal until a unanimous Supreme Court struck down Canada’s law banning it. The court gave Parliament 12 months to write a new law and instructed that law to include certain provisions: Patients must be competent adults who clearly consent and be suffering from a grievous, incurable medical condition that causes intolerable suffering. Furthermore, doctors can’t be compelled to participate.
Wherever this debate crops up, people raise concerns about the slippery slope. Once an ethical line is crossed, even if in very limited circumstances, rules loosen up until eventually little of the original restrictions remain. Looking at Canada, some say that’s happened and at a much faster pace than expected. Now, people don’t even need to have an incurable medical condition, some are even choosing MAID simply to escape poverty.
Canadian journalist Rupa Subramanya joins us to discuss this disturbing trend.
