TORONTO, ON – The Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA) has written the Minister of Justice to urge the federal government to reject the recommendation of the Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying to indefinitely exclude individuals whose sole underlying medical condition is mental illness from MAiD eligibility.
“The CCLA does not advocate for expanded access in the absence of meaningful safeguards,” said Howard Sapers, Executive Director of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association. “Rather, the CCLA supports a rights-respecting framework that permits MAiD eligibility while implementing robust safeguards, rigorous oversight, and sustained investments in mental health care, disability supports, housing, and social support systems.”
The concerns that have been raised about the inadequacy of Canada’s mental health care, disability supports, affordable and accessible housing, and social support systems are real and demand urgent action. However, denying an entire class of legally competent adults access to MAiD only because their intolerable suffering arises from a psychiatric rather than physical ailment is not a constitutionally permissible response.
The indefinite exclusion of MAiD access cannot be reconciled with the rights to life, liberty, security of the person, and equality guaranteed by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in Carter v. Canada (Attorney General) recognized that decisions regarding medical assistance in dying engage deeply personal interests in bodily integrity, autonomy, and dignity.
These constitutional principles do not cease to apply because the source of a person’s intolerable suffering is psychiatric rather than physical. Individuals living with severe and enduring mental illness may experience suffering that is just as profound and enduring as that associated with physical illnesses.
“An indefinite exclusion reinforces harmful assumptions that the suffering of persons with mental illness is somehow less serious, less capable of assessment, or less deserving of recognition,” said Harini Sivalingam, Director of the Equality Program at the Canadian Civil Liberties Association. “The Charter requires individualized assessment, not blanket prohibitions based on the nature of a disability. Protecting vulnerable individuals and respecting constitutional rights are not mutually exclusive objectives.”
The CCLA was also recently granted intervenor standing for a motion brought by an individual seeking an exemption to the exclusion of MAiD eligibility in the case of Brosseau et al, v Attorney General of Canada.
CCLA is grateful for the pro bono representation of Peter Henein, Brandon Chung, and Irina Sambroski of Henein Hutchison Robitaille LLP in this matter.
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