Assisted dying to become legal in Canada but without clear guidelines
Assisted dying to become legal in Canada but without clear guidelines
After supreme court overturned ban on physician-assisted suicide, Ottawa was given until 6 June to establish law allowing practice
Associated Press in Ottawa
Monday 6 June 2016 12.56 EDT
Doctor-assisted dying is about to become legal in Canada without clear legislation regarding how it would work.
Canada’s supreme court last year struck down laws that bar doctors from helping someone critically ill die, but put the ruling on hold until midnight on Monday to give the government time to come up with a new law. The House of Commons passed a law last week but it requires Senate approval and that could take days or weeks.
Provincial regulators issued guidelines based on the eligibility outlined by the supreme court but the health minister, Jane Philpott, said Monday the guidelines did not provide enough clarity and protection to doctors. She hopes the federal legislation will pass soon.
“Doctors may have inadequate protection and I expect in these early days, many physicians will be extremely reluctant to provide assistance to patients wanting medical assistance in dying,” Philpott told healthcare professionals in a speech in Ottawa. Philpott noted the guidelines vary from province to province and doctors lack standard criteria for who is eligible.
More:
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jun/06/canada-assisted-dying-suicide-law-deadline
