Discussion · Government Orders
Guillaume Deschênes-Thériault Liberal
“I support this bill. People with diseases like Alzheimer's should be able to ask for medical assistance in dying in advance, while they can still make their own choices. The bill has strong safeguards. Two doctors must check that all conditions are met, and the procedure must stop if the person resists through sounds or gestures.”
“Mr. Speaker, I sincerely believe that people suffering from diseases such as Alzheimer’s must be able to make free and informed decisions about their end-of-life care. People suffering from illnesses such as cancer or neurodegenerative disorders are able to make that decision immediately before MAID is provided. For people with Alzheimer’s, that choice is taken away from them by the disease. An advance request would allow a person diagnosed at an early stage to specify the conditions under which they would wish to receive MAID once they reach a later stage of the disease and are no longer capable of making that decision on their own. Two independent health care professionals would assess whether the conditions set out in this request are met. If at the time that MAID is to be provided, the person appears, through sounds or gestures, to be resisting or refusing the procedure, it would be stopped. Rigorous safeguards remain in place while also allowing people with illnesses such as Alzheimer’s to make a free and informed choice.”
Mr. Speaker, I sincerely believe that people suffering from diseases such as Alzheimer’s must be able to make free and informed decisions about their end-of-life care. People suffering from illnesses such as cancer or neurodegenerative disorders are able to make that decision immediately before MAID is provided. For people with Alzheimer’s, that choice is taken away from them by the disease. An advance request would allow a person diagnosed at an early stage to specify the conditions under which they would wish to receive MAID once they reach a later stage of the disease and are no longer capable of making that decision on their own. Two independent health care professionals would assess whether the conditions set out in this request are met. If at the time that MAID is to be provided, the person appears, through sounds or gestures, to be resisting or refusing the procedure, it would be stopped. Rigorous safeguards remain in place while also allowing people with illnesses such as Alzheimer’s to make a free and informed choice.