The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops strongly opposes euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide (MAiD). Access to treatment and palliative care must be improved.
Private Members Bill C-218 seeks to prevent persons whose sole medical condition is mental illness from accessing MAiD. The Canadian Bishops support this: “To enable or assist in the suicide for these patients directly contradicts national suicide prevention strategies and reneges on our collective social responsibility to provide persons living with mental health challenges with treatment, support, and hope through therapeutic interventions.”
The Canadian Bishops exhort parliamentarians to vote on Bill C‑218 according to their conscience rather than following party line.