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Canada Limits Assisted Dying for Mental Disorders

An Act to amend the Criminal Code (medical assistance in dying)

Summary

  • The bill amends the Criminal Code to state that a mental disorder is not a "grievous and irremediable" condition eligible for medical assistance in dying (MAID).
  • Its preamble emphasizes prioritizing mental health supports and suicide prevention over access to MAID for those with mental disorders.
  • It includes coordinating provisions to ensure consistency with prior MAID legislation regardless of the order of coming-into-force.
  • The bill does not create new programs, funding, or delivery mechanisms for mental health care; it narrowly changes eligibility in criminal law.

Builder Assessment

Neutral

This bill primarily addresses ethical and clinical eligibility for MAID, not economic growth, productivity, or competitiveness. It neither advances nor clearly undermines Build Canada’s economic tenets, so it does not align overall.

  • To better align, pair the eligibility change with measurable expansions in mental-health treatment access (e.g., tele-psychiatry, stepped-care, rapid-access clinics) tied to outcomes.
  • Streamline credential recognition and scopes of practice to rapidly expand the mental-health workforce (psychiatrists, psychologists, NPs, counsellors).
  • Use outcomes-based contracts and value-based funding to improve service efficiency and reduce wait times.
  • Introduce employer tax credits for effective return-to-work and mental-wellness programs with proven productivity gains.
  • Require transparent reporting on wait times, recovery-to-work rates, and cost-effectiveness to drive continuous improvement.

Question Period Cards

No question period cards yet.

Principles Analysis

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Canada should aim to be the world's most prosperous country.

A criminal-law eligibility change for MAID has no direct link to national income or wealth creation.

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Promote economic freedom, ambition, and breaking from bureaucratic inertia (reduce red tape).

It affects personal medical eligibility, not economic freedom, entrepreneurship, or regulatory burdens.

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Drive national productivity and global competitiveness.

Any workforce or productivity effects are indirect and speculative; the bill adds no treatment capacity or reforms.

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Grow exports of Canadian products and resources.

No bearing on trade, export capacity, or market access.

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Encourage investment, innovation, and resource development.

Does not change investment incentives or support innovation; it is a narrow criminal-law change.

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Deliver better public services at lower cost (government efficiency).

Could shift service demand but provides no delivery reforms or efficiency measures; fiscal impact is unclear.

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Reform taxes to incentivize work, risk-taking, and innovation.

No tax changes.

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Focus on large-scale prosperity, not incrementalism.

Addresses a narrow ethical/legal issue rather than broad economic prosperity or structural reforms.

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C-218

PartyConservative
StatusOutside the Order of Precedence
Last updatedJun 20, 2025
TopicsHealthcare
Parliament45