Canada drops plan to allow euthanasia for mental illness

The Canadian government will not expand its medical assistance in dying (MAID) program to include individuals suffering solely from mental illness, Minister of Justice Sean Fraser announced Oct. 7. Fraser stated at the Canadian House of Commons that upcoming legislation will indefinitely extend the ban on euthanasia for those whose only condition is a mental health issue.

The decision follows a 2024 parliamentary report that concluded the country was not ready for such an expansion. The government is heeding a unanimous recommendation from a joint parliamentary committee to pause the broadening of the program. Fraser noted that while there is no perfect consensus on the matter, the government believes this is the correct approach at this time.

The MAID program is currently limited to people with a grievous and irremediable medical condition, though that condition does not have to be terminal. Since the program was legalized roughly a decade ago, approximately 100,000 Canadians have died through MAID. In 2023, euthanasia accounted for about one out of every 20 deaths in the country.