Advance requests for medical assistance in dying now accepted
(Quebec) A person suffering from a serious and incurable illness leading to incapacity, such as Alzheimer's, can now make an advance request for medical assistance in dying in Quebec, if they so wish.
Legislation passed in June 2023 for advance requests for medical assistance in dying came into force on Wednesday.
They provide that a person who has been diagnosed with a serious and incurable illness may make a request for medical assistance in dying while still capable of consenting to care, with a view to receiving it once he or she has become incapacitated.
To make such a request, the person must be capable of consenting to care, that is, "be able to fully understand their medical situation and the information given, to decide what is best for them and to communicate their wishes."
"This request must be made freely, without external pressure. It must also be done in an informed manner, that is, that the person who formulates it knows, among other things, what this care entails and that there are other possible treatments," explains the Quebec government on its website.
Advance requests must meet several criteria that were already in place for traditional requests.
Among other things, the person must be of legal age and be struggling with an advanced and irreversible decline in his or her abilities. He or she must also experience "persistent, unbearable physical or psychological suffering that cannot be relieved in conditions deemed tolerable".
A person who wishes to apply should speak to a health care professional. Specialized physicians and nurse practitioners are the only professionals authorized to provide this care in Quebec.
For advance requests, there is no set time between the request and the administration of medical assistance in dying. It can take months or even years between the request and the time to receive care.
Without waiting for the federal governmentQuebec has gone ahead with authorizing advance requests for medical assistance in dying without waiting for Ottawa to amend its Criminal Code to allow them, which it has not yet done.
Earlier this week, federal Health Minister Mark Holland confirmed that the Trudeau government will not launch any legal action to challenge Quebec's law that allows advance requests.
He reiterated that under the Criminal Code as currently drafted, administering medical assistance in dying in advance "is not legal," but he agreed that the administration of justice is a provincial responsibility.
Quebec prosecutors have been instructed not to file criminal proceedings in connection with a death that occurred in the context of medical assistance in dying if the evidence shows that it was done in accordance with freely and informed wishes.
The College of Physicians, which supports advance requests for people diagnosed with a neurodegenerative disease who would not be able to consent to medical assistance in dying later, lamented that Ottawa is dragging its feet on amending the Criminal Code.
Legislation passed in June 2023 for advance requests for medical assistance in dying came into force on Wednesday.
They provide that a person who has been diagnosed with a serious and incurable illness may make a request for medical assistance in dying while still capable of consenting to care, with a view to receiving it once he or she has become incapacitated.
To make such a request, the person must be capable of consenting to care, that is, "be able to fully understand their medical situation and the information given, to decide what is best for them and to communicate their wishes."
"This request must be made freely, without external pressure. It must also be done in an informed manner, that is, that the person who formulates it knows, among other things, what this care entails and that there are other possible treatments," explains the Quebec government on its website.
Advance requests must meet several criteria that were already in place for traditional requests.
Among other things, the person must be of legal age and be struggling with an advanced and irreversible decline in his or her abilities. He or she must also experience "persistent, unbearable physical or psychological suffering that cannot be relieved in conditions deemed tolerable".
A person who wishes to apply should speak to a health care professional. Specialized physicians and nurse practitioners are the only professionals authorized to provide this care in Quebec.
For advance requests, there is no set time between the request and the administration of medical assistance in dying. It can take months or even years between the request and the time to receive care.
Without waiting for the federal governmentQuebec has gone ahead with authorizing advance requests for medical assistance in dying without waiting for Ottawa to amend its Criminal Code to allow them, which it has not yet done.
Earlier this week, federal Health Minister Mark Holland confirmed that the Trudeau government will not launch any legal action to challenge Quebec's law that allows advance requests.
He reiterated that under the Criminal Code as currently drafted, administering medical assistance in dying in advance "is not legal," but he agreed that the administration of justice is a provincial responsibility.
Quebec prosecutors have been instructed not to file criminal proceedings in connection with a death that occurred in the context of medical assistance in dying if the evidence shows that it was done in accordance with freely and informed wishes.
The College of Physicians, which supports advance requests for people diagnosed with a neurodegenerative disease who would not be able to consent to medical assistance in dying later, lamented that Ottawa is dragging its feet on amending the Criminal Code.
