Jun 23, 2026
Most Euthanasia Committee Members Want Government to Stop Mental Illness Expansion
Euthanasia for mental illness remains scheduled for March 17, 2027.
But hopefully not for long.
On June 17, the Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying tabled a report from their recent study of euthanasia for those with mental illness as their only underlying condition. That report included one recommendation:
“That the Government of Canada amend the Criminal Code to indefinitely exclude persons whose sole underlying medical condition is a mental illness from eligibility for medical assistance in dying.”
Throughout the study, the committee heard from 44 witnesses and received 32 written briefs, most of which opposed the scheduled expansion.
This recommendation is the latest pushback on the prospect of euthanasia for those with mental illness. In 2023, the same committee (albeit with different members) recommended that euthanasia should be expanded to mental illness, but that there had not been sufficient time for provincial governments and medical professional associations to prepare. The committee recommended a delay until 2024.
In 2024, the committee recommended that euthanasia for mental illness not be available until the Minister of Health and the Minister of Justice were satisfied that it could be safely and adequately provided. Now, the Committee went a step further to recommend indefinitely excluding those with mental illness from euthanasia.
All of this is the result of advocacy, not just from political and medical elites, but from everyday citizens like you. Over the past five years, Care Not Kill supporters have delivered nearly 300,000 Care Not Kill flyers, raising awareness about euthanasia for mental illness and the need for suicide prevention. And you have sent nearly 700 emails to your Members of Parliament.
All this action, combined with the efforts of so many other Canadians, has influenced our political representatives. The committee’s report focused on many of the same issues that have been highlighted ever since the prospect of euthanasia for mental illness was first introduced. In addition to the majority report, Senator Pierre Dalphond, Liberal MP Marcus Powlowski, and the five Conservative members of the committee wrote supplementary opinions (agreeing with the majority but clarifying certain aspects). And three Senators and Bloc MP Luc Theriault wrote dissenting opinions (disagreeing with the majority).
Irremediability and Suicidality
Mental illness can never be considered irremediable or incurable. Dr. Sanjeev Sockalingam from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health told the committee that “there are currently no established criteria or consensus among psychiatrists about whether or when a mental illness should be considered irremediable.” Indeed, most psychiatrists remain opposed to the expansion of euthanasia to mental illness.
Some pro-expansion advocates argue that this is unfair, as it can be difficult to determine irremediability for physical illness as well yet those with physical illness can be euthanized. Liberal MP and co-chair of the committee Marcus Powlowski, in his supplementary opinion, responds:
“To the extent that there are such cases I would suggest it would be more appropriate to question whether MAiD is appropriate in any such case where there is uncertainty over the medical prognosis- rather than to accept the conclusion of those practitioners who suggested they were “comfortable” with making a decision about irremediability even if there was inherently some inability to come to that conclusion with reasonable certainty.”
In other words, problems with the current approach are no reason to further expand eligibility.
Likewise, euthanasia cannot be distinguished from suicidality. Dr. Sonu Gaind told the committee that reporting data “ignores many suicide risk factors, so we can’t know the full scope of how much suicidality fuels MAID requests.” Distinguishing euthanasia from suicidality is impossible because these suicide risk factors are already associated with euthanasia in many cases where people are not dying. This conflicts with suicide prevention efforts, as psychiatry is grounded in treating hopelessness and preventing suicide, not assisting it.
Other witnesses noted the problems with suicide contagion. Dr. John Maher stated that suicide rates rose faster after the legalization of euthanasia in other jurisdictions. Canada’s suicide prevention helpline has also seen an overlap between people experiencing suicidality and considering euthanasia.
Some pro-euthanasia advocates argue that the availability of euthanasia helps prevent suicides. Dr. Maher responded to that argument, commenting that “The argument that somehow a messy death justifies supporting [medically assisted] suicide misses the point completely. What it justifies is treatment to prevent getting to a messy death or MAID in the first place.”
Lack of Mental Health Care and Safeguards
The committee also noted the lack of access to mental health care in Canada, as well as the impact of euthanasia on vulnerable Canadians. Canada’s euthanasia framework already permits people to be euthanized despite social vulnerability and untreated mental illness. Euthanasia has a serious impact on people with disabilities, on women who are euthanized at higher rates than men, and on Indigenous communities. Professor Roderick McCormick told the Committee that euthanasia is “culturally biased… in that it emphasizes the individual’s right to autonomy and choice without taking others into consideration.”
Dr. Jim Van Os talked about the Dutch experience, noting that most of those who request psychiatric euthanasia in the Netherlands are traumatized, marginalized and living in poverty.
MP Powlowski commented on a key piece of the problem. People don’t want to die – they want to be cared for. He notes:
“But one’s degree of unhappiness in life is also largely, sometimes overwhelmingly, determined by one’s social circumstances- whether you have people who care about you, whether you are loved, whether you have adequate housing, food, or a fulfilling job. And perhaps more than anything whether you can believe you will ever have access to any of these things, and whether you feel you and your life are valued.”
Powlowski goes on to note two key reasons why the state is justified in prohibiting euthanasia for mental illness. First, it protects an individual from themselves. Some people become despondent and want to die. Yet, the vast majority of them get better. Often, time heals. Second, it protects the suicidal person’s family and loved ones. The family is deeply affected by their loss, “and haunted by the belief that it came about because of something they did, or did not, do.”
The Conservative members of the Committee (4 MPs and 1 Senator) also highlighted gaps in safeguards and oversight in a supplementary report. They write that “MAID safeguards should prevent mistakes before death occurs; a system that primarily reviews decisions after a MAID death cannot fully address the risk of irreversible error.” They recommend that the government strengthen monitoring and reporting by collecting better data. They also recommend that the government review the effectiveness and enforceability of current safeguards and work with provinces and territories to establish minimum national standards for safeguards. And they recommend that euthanasia should never be suggested to someone in crisis.
MP Marcus Powlowski also commented on the lack of safeguards and oversight, saying that some doctors and nurses interpret parts of Canada’s euthanasia law far too broadly. “Furthermore, we heard stories of doctors with a seemingly cavalier attitude towards ending a life.” He notes that many oversight bodies in Canada treat enforcement as someone else’s responsibility.
It’s encouraging to see so many members of the committee, including a government MP and co-chair of the committee, highlight additional problems with euthanasia in Canada.
Opposition
As expected, there was also opposition to the recommendation to indefinitely pause the expansion of MAID to those with mental illness from some committee members. However, none of them recommended proceeding with the planned expansion without some sort of further action.
Senator Dalphond, though ultimately agreeing with the recommendation to delay the expansion of euthanasia, argues that it would be unconstitutional to prohibit euthanasia for all people with mental illness as their only condition. Nevertheless, he argues that additional safeguards would be needed to better protect people with mental illness.
Three other Senators wrote a dissenting report, arguing that the government must not exclude people with mental illness from eligibility for euthanasia. Rather, the government should ask the Supreme Court to clarify the law regarding further delaying the expansion. They also complained that more than two-thirds of the committee’s witnesses were publicly opposed to the expansion, and that the committee process was flawed and lacked a fair and balanced perspective.
Finally, Bloc Québécois MP Luc Theriault wrote a dissenting report, recommending that the government ask the Supreme Court for a reference on the law regarding euthanasia and mental illness, though agreeing that the government should delay the expansion until they receive a ruling from the Supreme Court.
Conclusion
We celebrate the good news of the committee’s work and majority recommendation. But the work isn’t over. The government still needs to pass legislation to implement the committee’s recommendation. And the government is expected to take at least a few weeks before responding to the report.
The government may introduce its own legislation. Or they could support the existing Bill C-218, which would entirely repeal the scheduled expansion of euthanasia to mental illness. Send an email asking your MP to support legislation to stop the expansion of euthanasia to mental illness.
An indefinite exclusion of euthanasia for mental illness is just one step in the right direction. This pause gives us an opportunity to focus on other problems with euthanasia in Canada. Stay tuned for more action opportunities in the months ahead.
