{"id":238,"date":"2013-05-24T21:10:22","date_gmt":"2013-05-24T21:10:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/eoldev.law.dal.ca\/?page_id=238"},"modified":"2017-05-10T14:51:49","modified_gmt":"2017-05-10T14:51:49","slug":"euthanasia","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/eol.law.dal.ca\/?page_id=238","title":{"rendered":"Euthanasia"},"content":{"rendered":"
[expand title=”What is euthanasia?<\/strong>“]
\nEuthanasia is a deliberate act undertaken by one person with the intention of ending the life of another person to relieve that person’s suffering where that act is the cause of death.
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[expand title=”What is the difference between assisted suicide and euthanasia?<\/strong>“]
\nAssisted suicide and euthanasia are different.\u00a0 Assisted suicide is providing another with the knowledge or means to intentionally end his or her own life; euthanasia is deliberate action undertaken by one person with the intention of ending the life of another person to relieve that person\u2019s suffering where that act is the cause of death.\u00a0 An example of assisted suicide is a physician who prescribes barbiturates to a patient with advanced ALS who uses the drugs to kill herself.\u00a0 An example of euthanasia is a physician who administers a combination of a sedative, a barbiturate, and a neuromuscular block to a man suffering from advanced spinal muscular atrophy with the intention of ending his life in order to relieve the pain and suffering caused by his condition where the barbiturates cause death.
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[expand title=”Is euthanasia legal in Canada?<\/strong>“]<\/p>\n

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On June 17, 2016, new federal legislation came into force creating a regulatory framework for medical assistance in dying in Canada.\u00a0 Under this legislation, medical assistance in dying is legal if the eligibility criteria are met and the procedural safeguards are followed.\u00a0 The eligibility criteria are as follows:<\/p>\n

241.2 (1) A person may receive medical assistance in dying only if they meet all of the following criteria:<\/p>\n

(a) they are eligible \u2014 or, but for any applicable minimum period of residence or waiting period, would be<\/p>\n

eligible \u2014 for health services funded by a government in Canada;<\/p>\n

(b) they are at least 18 years of age and capable of making decisions with respect to their health;<\/p>\n

(c) they have a grievous and irremediable medical condition;<\/p>\n

(d) they have made a voluntary request for medical assistance in dying that, in particular, was not made as a result of external pressure; and<\/p>\n

(e) they give informed consent to receive medical assistance in dying after having been informed of the means that are available to relieve their suffering, including palliative care.<\/p>\n

(2) A person has a grievous and irremediable medical condition only if they meet all of the following criteria:<\/p>\n

(a) they have a serious and incurable illness, disease or disability;<\/p>\n

(b) they are in an advanced state of irreversible decline in capability;<\/p>\n

(c) that illness, disease or disability or that state of decline causes them enduring physical or psychological<\/p>\n

suffering that is intolerable to them and that cannot be relieved under conditions that they consider acceptable;<\/p>\n

and<\/p>\n

(d) their natural death has become reasonably foreseeable, taking into account all of their medical circumstances, without a prognosis necessarily having been made as to the specific length of time that they have remaining.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The key procedural safeguards are as follows:<\/p>\n

(3) Before a medical practitioner or nurse practitioner provides a person with medical assistance in dying, the medical practitioner or nurse practitioner must<\/p>\n

(a) be of the opinion that the person meets all of the criteria set out in subsection (1);<\/p>\n

(b) ensure that the person\u2019s request for medical assistance in dying was<\/p>\n

(i) made in writing and signed and dated by the person or by another person under subsection (4),<\/p>\n

and<\/p>\n

(ii) signed and dated after the person was informed by a medical practitioner or nurse practitioner that<\/p>\n

the person has a grievous and irremediable medical condition;<\/p>\n

(c) be satisfied that the request was signed and dated by the person \u2014 or by another person under subsection (4) \u2014 before two independent witnesses who then also signed and dated the request;<\/p>\n

(d) ensure that the person has been informed that they may, at any time and in any manner, withdraw<\/p>\n

their request;<\/p>\n

(e) ensure that another medical practitioner or nurse practitioner has provided a written opinion confirming that the person meets all of the criteria set out in<\/p>\n

subsection (1);<\/p>\n

(f) be satisfied that they and the other medical practitioner or nurse practitioner referred to in paragraph<\/p>\n

(e) are independent;<\/p>\n

(g) ensure that there are at least 10 clear days between the day on which the request was signed by or on behalf of the person and the day on which the medical assistance in dying is provided or \u2014 if they and the<\/p>\n

other medical practitioner or nurse practitioner referred to in paragraph (e) are both of the opinion that<\/p>\n

the person\u2019s death, or the loss of their capacity to provide informed consent, is imminent \u2014 any shorter period that the first medical practitioner or nurse practitioner considers appropriate in the circumstances;<\/p>\n

(h) immediately before providing the medical assistance in dying, give the person an opportunity to withdraw their request and ensure that the person gives express consent to receive medical assistance in dying;<\/p>\n

and<\/p>\n

(i) if the person has difficulty communicating, take all necessary measures to provide a reliable means by which the person may understand the information that is provided to them and communicate their decision.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Additional procedural details are set out in the legislation.<\/p>\n

In addition, under the legislation, the Ministers of Health and Justice are required to initiate independent reviews into the issues of requests made by mature minors, requests made in advance of loss of capacity, and requests made by individuals with mental illness as their sole underlying condition.\u00a0 The Ministers must initiate the reviews by December 18, 2016 and then must bring the reports from the reviews back before both Houses of Parliament no later than two years after initiation of the reviews.<\/p>\n

In the meantime, provincial and territorial governments are developing their responses to the recent changes to the Criminal Code:<\/p>\n

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[expandsub1 title=”Alberta<\/strong>“]<\/p>\n