Alberta Protecting People from Euthanasia
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Alberta Justice Minister Mickey Amery, introducing Bill 18, said “It is my hope that, if Bill 18 is passed, it will set an example for the rest of Canada, because hope should always be easier to access than death.”
With Bill 18, the Safeguards for Last Resort Termination of Life Act, introduced this week, Alberta is set to become the first Canadian jurisdiction to slow and potentially reverse the rapid growth of euthanasia in Canada. This is big news and a massive win for pro-life advocacy in Canada. While the media, government bodies, and legislators have signalled concerns about euthanasia, there has been little appetite to reverse course. Until now.
While euthanasia is permitted through an exception to homicide in the federal Criminal Code, provinces are responsible for how it is delivered in the healthcare system. Just because something is not criminal, does not mean provinces are required to provide or permit it.
Alberta’s Bill 18 is a comprehensive bill that addresses problems that the federal government and other provincial governments have largely ignored. Alberta will enact safeguards against the abuse of euthanasia that we have witnessed over and over again.
What Does Bill 18 Do?
Prohibiting MAID in certain cases
Bill 18 will prohibit MAID for those who are not nearing natural death. Euthanasia for non-terminal conditions has been legal in Canada since 2021, despite numerous calls for change from disability rights organizations, the United Nations, and others. Since the expansion of euthanasia to persons who are not nearing natural death, there have been few additional safeguards in place for people who are not dying.
However, federal law does not define “reasonably foreseeable natural death.” Some doctors have interpreted this to mean that a person will die within the next ten years, allowing them to get around the additional safeguards and waiting periods.
To prevent such liberal interpretations, Bill 18 clarifies that MAID must only be available for people with a prognosis of natural death within 12 months. This will help ensure that those who are not nearing natural death are not euthanized.
Additionally, Bill 18 will prohibit euthanasia for people with mental illness as their only underlying condition. The bill will also prohibit euthanasia for minors and for people who do not have decision-making capacity. Euthanasia for mental illness as the sole underlying condition and euthanasia for minors are not yet permitted by Canada’s criminal law. But Alberta knows that euthanasia is scheduled to expand to mental illness next year, and that the federal government has had contemplated expanding to euthanasia by advance request.
No promoting MAID
When a healthcare provider initiates a conversation about euthanasia, patients may feel pressured or encouraged to consider it. This may erode hope of recovery or worsen a patient’s feeling or fear of being a burden. Many patients already report isolation, loneliness, or feeling like a burden as reasons for their suffering. Patients may interpret an offer of euthanasia as a recommendation.
Bill 18 will prohibit doctors and nurses from initiating a conversation about euthanasia with a patient. Additionally, it will prohibit advertising euthanasia within medical facilities. Instead, when Bill 18 passes, health professionals may only talk about or provide euthanasia if the patient brings it up first.
Protecting Conscience
While Alberta and its medical regulatory bodies do not require medical professionals to participate in euthanasia, Bill 18 would codify conscience protections in law.
This is important for doctors and nurses who should not be forced to violate their conscience, but also for patients, many of whom want a doctor who they know will never participate in providing euthanasia even if asked.
Bill 18 not only protects against direct participation in euthanasia, but also allows medical professionals not to participate in assessing a patient’s eligibility for euthanasia or refer a patient to a euthanasia provider.
Bill 18 would also protect healthcare facilities’ freedom to opt out of providing or participating in euthanasia. This is increasingly an issue for faith-based institutions who want to provide care without providing or assisting death. The Alberta government recognizes the importance of allowing healthcare professionals to live according to their conscience and not participate in killing patients.
Better oversight
Although euthanasia is still an exception to homicide in Canada’s Criminal Code, governments have implemented very little oversight to ensure that existing rules are followed. Bill 18 will establish better oversight and a process to review euthanasia deaths. In addition, the bill will impose professional penalties for failure to follow criminal or provincial regulations. It would also make it possible for people to make complaints where they believe legislation has been contravened.
Other safeguards
Other safeguards include requiring a family member to be a witness to a euthanasia death. Family members often understand best what their loved ones need to live well and are far more likely than a doctor to view a person holistically rather than as just another medical case.
At the same time, this requirement may help the doctor discover whether there is any coercion from a family member. Additionally, Bill 18 will require doctors to carefully review the health records of a patient and discuss the patient’s health with any family doctor.
Alberta is also seeking to crack down on “doctor shopping”, where a person is refused euthanasia by one doctor, so they seek out another doctor who will approve their request. For example, in 2024, a woman who was refused euthanasia by her doctors in Alberta was later approved for euthanasia by a B.C. doctor. Bill 18 will prohibit doctors from referring a patient to a doctor in another province.
How can you respond?
The Alberta government will inevitably face backlash on this legislation from pro-euthanasia advocates across the country. Bill 18 is the strongest euthanasia legislation we’ve seen in this country since the Supreme Court struck down Canada’s ban on euthanasia in 2015.
We expect the bill to pass, given that it was introduced by a majority government. But we encourage you, if you live in Alberta, to send a note to your MLA urging him or her to support this legislation.
Consider also sending an email to the Premier and the Minister of Justice, thanking them for tackling the issue of euthanasia.
If you live outside Alberta, please email your MPP or MLA and ask them to follow Alberta’s lead to protect people in your province as well.
