Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s government is taking steps to sharply restrict who’s eligible for medical assistance in dying.
Smith’s United Conservative Party government introduced a bill Wednesday stipulating that only those likely to die of natural causes within a year would be eligible for medical assistance in dying.
Medical assistance in dying, better known as MAID, would also continue to be banned for anyone under 18, as federal rules also dictate.
The proposed Alberta limitations are similar to the rules used when Canada’s MAID program was launched in 2016.
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A Quebec judge later found those eligibility rules overly narrow and unconstitutional, prompting the federal government to expand eligibility five years ago.
The federal rules currently allow people to apply for MAID if they’re in an advanced state of decline and suffering from a serious illness or disability not considered terminal.
Alberta Justice Minister Mickey Amery says the Quebec decision isn’t binding on Alberta and, if necessary, the province will defend the bill in court.
“This bill finds the appropriate balance between allowing people who are eligible for the original intention of MAID to be able to seek that, but also to find a balance in protecting our vulnerable,” Amery told reporters before the bill was tabled.
“We’re always prepared for any legal challenge.”
— More to come…
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