C-314 – An Act to amend the Criminal Code (medical assistance in dying) – changes the Criminal Code to specify that a mental disorder is not a grievous and irremediable medical condition, and as such doesn’t qualify for medical assistance in dying.
It looks like this is mostly just simplifying an exemption that already exists in the Criminal Code. Right now it has a list of criteria that need to be met for someone to be considered to have a grievous and irremediable medical condition, one of which involves the severity of an illness, disease, or disability. The current exemption says that a mental illness is not considered an illness, disease, or disability. C-314 would just make it so mental disorders don’t qualify at all.
I contacted my MP about C-314, as I wasn’t entirely sure why it’s necessary since it doesn’t seem to change anything. It sounds like the change in the exclusion shouldn’t change much, though exempting mental illness from being considered an illness, disease, or disability is a bit more practical as other conditions to qualify could still be present and recognized. (One of the requirements is that someone is in an advanced state of irreversible decline in capability. It’s perfectly possible for that to be an effect of a mental illness and still count towards determining if someone qualifies for MAiD if something else meets the criteria mental illness is excluded from) The change from “mental illness” to “mental disorder” seems to be based on the idea that “mental illness” is primarily covered by psychiatry while “mental disorder” covers a much wider range of issues. Examples I was given of things that count as disorders but not illnesses include sleep disorders and neurocognitive disorders. We’ll see what comes up in the debates regarding if this change could be problematic or not.
Progress
On Oct 18, 2023 C-314 went up for its Second Reading and failed with 150 voting in favour and 167 voting against.
| Party | For | Against | Paired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | 8 | 136 | 2 |
| Conservative | 115 | 0 | 1 |
| Bloc Quebecois | 0 | 30 | 1 |
| NDP | 24 | 0 | 0 |
| Green | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Independent | 1 | 1 | 0 |
And now we get some clarification on just what C-314 does!
The Conservatives think that MAiD has expanded too quickly, and support C-314 to make the current exclusion of mental illness from qualifying for MAiD permanent. It’s worth noting that part of their argument includes the following:
I would remind the minister and his government that the issue is also profoundly simple; that is, the principle that all life, all human life is precious and worthy of defence and protection, especially for those who do not have the ability to speak for themselves and have no one to speak for them.
This sounds a bit like an attempt to equate MAiD with certain other topics that end up being controversial.
The Liberals argue that the mental illness exclusion was always intended to be temporary, and that when the current exemption ends next year they believe medical professionals will be prepared to make the proper decision on if someone suffering from mental illness should qualify for MAiD. They also argue that changing “mental illness” to “mental disorder” can cause a lot of confusion as the Criminal Code has a very specific definition of “mental disorder” and no new definitions are applied to it for C-314. Under the Criminal Code you’ll see “mental disorder” show up a lot with “not criminally responsible”, so there’s a long history behind that term.
The Bloc Quebecois don’t believe the government should be allowed to make decisions on someone’s suffering and as such oppose the Bill. If someone feels they’re in a bad enough position that MAiD is the only option and medical professionals agree, they should qualify for it. They also point out that consultations and studies have determined that someone who’s experiencing suicidal thoughts wouldn’t qualify for MAiD, and disagree with comparing MAiD to suicide.
The NDP agree with the Liberals that we’re now in a better position to ensure MAiD is only given to people who really need it, but still voted in favour of C-314.
Worth noting is that the following Liberal MPs voted in favour of C-314:
- Chad Collins (Ontario, Hamilton East—Stoney Creek)
- Julie Dzerowicz (Ontario, Davenport)
- Emmanuella Lambropoulos (Quebec, Saint-Laurent)
- Joël Lightbound (Quebec, Louis-Hébert)
- Wayne Long (New Brunswick, Saint John—Rothesay)
- John McKay (Ontario, Scarborough—Guildwood)
- Marcus Powlowski (Ontario, Thunder Bay—Rainy River)
- Ken McDonald (Newfoundland and Labrador, Avalon)