Stop MAID expansion for mental illness
Petitioners ask Parliament to support Bill C-218 to prohibit expanding medical assistance in dying to people whose sole medical condition is mental illness by declaring mental disorders not grievous and irremediable.
Why we would sign this petition
- It would stop extending MAID to people whose sole condition is mental illness, keeping legal access limited to other grievous, irremediable conditions.
- It prioritizes expanding mental-health services and suicide-prevention measures rather than offering assisted dying as an option for those with mental illness.
- It seeks to protect vulnerable Canadians by avoiding normalizing suicide as a response to mental health suffering.
Why we wouldn’t sign this petition
- It could block assisted dying for some patients whose psychiatric condition is truly irremediable and who request MAID as a last-resort.
- It may deny autonomy to competent adults seeking relief and force medically complex cases into a blanket prohibition rather than case-by-case assessment.
- It focuses on prohibition rather than guaranteeing practical, funded mental-health and suicide-prevention services that petitioners also call for.
The summary and both sets of reasons are AI-generated from the petition and given equal weight. Claims are the petitioners’ own; consult the official record for the full text.
Official petition
Petition to the House of Commons Whereas: Medical assistance in dying will expand to Canadians with mental illness on March 17, 2027, unless Parliament intervenes; Parliament considers it a priority to ensure that supports are in place for the mental health of everyone in Canada; Vulnerable Canadians must be given suicide prevention instead of suicide assistance; Medical assistance in dying risks normalizing suicide as a solution for those suffering from mental illness; Canada should focus on increasing mental health supports and improving access to these supports instead of offering medical assistance in dying for those with mental illness; Bill C-218 seeks to provide that a mental disorder is not a grievous and irremediable medical condition for which a person could receive medical assistance in dying; Therefore we, the undersigned citizens and residents of Canada, call upon the Government of Canada to: Support Bill C-218 and stop the expansion of medical assistance in dying to those with mental illness.
Government response
No government response is available yet.