medical assistance in dying - guest lecture Flashcards
what are the eligibility criteria for MAID? name them and the updates
consent: be able to give informed consent at multiple stages (in 2021, was decided that final consent can be in the form of a waiver)
condition: have a grievous and irremediable condition (before 2021 it had to be a condition with foreseeable death)
voluntary request: no outside pressure/influence
age: 18+ and deemed mentally competent
covered: be eligible for health services funded by the government
what were the 3 cases that made up the legal battle for MAID?
Rodriguez (1993)
Carter (2015)
Truchon (2019)
in the case of Rodriguez, why was the use of MAID denied?
majority rejected the claim that the prohibition violated her protection from cruel and unusual punishments and the
guarantee of equal rights
argued that assisted suicide was widely considered to be morally and legally wrong, and that lifting the prohibition could potentially lead to abuses, particularly among the vulnerable, and that the prohibition upheld principles of fundamental justice
recognized that Rodriguez’s right to security of the person was denied by the prohibition because it deprived her of
personal autonomy in decisions concerning her body, and it
caused her both physical pain and psychological distress
what arguments were brought up in the Carter case in regards to the criminal code? what did this result in
with liberty by constraining the ability of such individuals to make decisions concerning their bodily integrity and medical care
with security of the person by leaving such individuals to endure intolerable suffering
deprive some people of life by forcing them to take their own lives prematurely for fear that they would be incapable of doing so when they reached a point where their suffering was intolerable
RESULTED IN THE LAW BEING STRUCK DOWN UNANIMOUSLY - AMMENDEMENTS ON MAID WERE MADE
when does the bill for MAID receive royal assent? what was this bill called?
after the carter case
2016
bill c-14
describe what is meant by a grievous & irremediable medical condition
have a serious illness, disease or disability
be in an advanced state of decline that cannot be reversed
experience unbearable physical or mental suffering from your illness, disease, disability or state of decline that cannot be relieved under conditions that you consider acceptable
be at a point where your natural death has become reasonably foreseeable
this takes into account all of your medical circumstances and does not require a specific prognosis as to how long you have left to live
when must the medical patient be able to give consent for MAID?
at the time of your request
immediately before MAID
is provided
what condition does a majority of the patients who used MAID had?
cancer
what can be said about MAID and mental illnesses? (following 2021)
Bill C7 temporarily excluded MAID
eligibility for individuals suffering
solely from mental illness for 24
months
required the Ministers of Justice and
Health to initiate an expert review
tasked with making recommendations
within the next year on protocols,
guidance and safeguards for this
population
