Canada's government seeks to expand access to assisted dying

Proposal would include for the first time people who are not in immediate risk of dying

Reuters in Ottawa
Mon 24 Feb 2020 18.26 ESTLast modified on Tue 25 Feb 2020 08.55 EST

Canada’s government has proposed broadening a 2016 law on medically assisted death to include for the first time people who were not at immediate risk of dying.

Ottawa made the announcement after a court in the province of Quebec last September said part of the law on physician-assisted suicide was too limited and should therefore be considered unconstitutional.

The proposed changes would “remove the requirement for a person’s natural death to be reasonably foreseeable in order to be eligible for medical assistance in dying”, the justice minister, David Lametti, said in a statement.

Canada is one of the few nations where doctors can legally help sick people die. There have been more than 13,000 reported medically assisted deaths in Canada.

More:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/feb/24/canada-government-access-assisted-dying