from Care
A committee of Canada’s parliament has called for the country’s assisted suicide and euthanasia programme to be extended to “mature minors”.
A report by the Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) suggests children whose deaths are “reasonably forseeable” should be eligible.
The report also recommended that parental consent is not always necessary in certain cases where a child is considered eligible for a doctor-assisted death.
It calls for the Government of Canada to “establish a requirement that, where appropriate, the parents or guardians of a mature minor be consulted in the course of the assessment process for MAID”
But it adds that “the will of a minor who is found to have the requisite decision-making capacity” in the eyes of the state should “ultimately take priority”.
Canadian MPs objected to the proposal to expand MAID eligibility to children, highlighting how decision-making capacities, even for mature young people, remain questionable.