Alberta’s Proposed MAID Restrictions Threaten Patient Rights and Autonomy

TORONTO — The Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA) expresses deep concern over the Government of Alberta’s proposed Bill 18, which would significantly restrict access to medical assistance in dying (MAID) and undermine constitutionally protected rights.

“MAID is not about encouraging death — it is about respecting the choices of individuals who are enduring intolerable suffering and seeking control over how and when they die”, said Howard Sapers, Executive Director at the CCLA.  “Governments have a legitimate role in protecting vulnerable individuals and ensuring safeguards. However, such measures must respect fundamental rights and freedoms.”

Dans Carter c. Canada the Supreme Court of Canada affirmed that competent adults suffering intolerably from a grievous and irremediable medical condition have a Charter-protected right to seek MAID. That right extends to individuals experiencing enduring and intolerable suffering and is not limited to those who are terminally ill. Bill 18’s limitation of eligibility to only those whose death is “reasonably foreseeable” would exclude many people suffering with serious, intolerable, but non‑terminal, conditions and sharply curtail their constitutional protection.

Bill 18 also introduces a series of additional barriers that undermine meaningful access to MAID, including:

• Prohibiting healthcare providers from initiating conversations about MAID;
• Preventing referrals to providers in other jurisdictions;
• Requiring an immediate family member to witness the provision of MAID;
• Restricting the dissemination of information about MAID;
• Expanding sanctions against providers who do not comply with provincial rules.

Restrictions on referrals and information sharing directly impact patient autonomy and interfere with clinicians’ ability to provide comprehensive healthcare options. When patients are denied full information, they are forced to make critical healthcare decisions in a vacuum.

“Systemic policy failures causing inadequate social supports and barriers to appropriate healthcare are the real problem, not the existence of MAID,” said Harini Sivalingam, Director of Equality at the CCLA. “Governments must address these underlying systemic issues to ensure that choices about MAID are informed and voluntary and not restrict access to those who seek MAID as a genuine end of life option.”

Any legislative framework regulating MAID must ensure meaningful access while maintaining appropriate, evidence‑based safeguards. The CCLA urges the Government of Alberta to withdraw Bill 18, which as currently drafted invites constitutional challenge and will prolong the suffering of those it purports to protect.