Canadian charter challenge filed over Medical Assistance in Dying law

Canadians living with disabilities are being pushed toward premature death in the face of inadequate healthcare, stigma and discrimination, alleges a Charter challenge filed by a coalition of disability rights organizations and two affected individuals.

“We are witnessing an alarming trend where people with disabilities are seeking assisted suicide due to social deprivation, poverty, and lack of essential supports,” said Krista Carr, executive vice president of Inclusion Canada.

“This law also sends a devastating message that life with a disability is a fate worse than death, undermining decades of work toward equity and inclusion.”

The legal challenge argues that providing assisted death solely based on disability is unconstitutional and asks the Ontario Superior Court of Justice to strike down Track 2 of Canada’s medical assistance in dying or MAiD law, which the coalition said should only be available to people whose natural death is reasonably foreseeable.

“It’s time to put an end to helping people with disabilities commit suicide and start supporting them to live,” Carr said.

Indigenous people and communities face higher rates of disability, as well as greater barriers to accessing healthcare, disability services and other supports.

“This law is not just discriminatory; it reinforces the ongoing marginalization of Indigenous Peoples with disabilities,” said Neil Belanger, CEO of Indigenous Disability Canada and the British Columbia Aboriginal Network on Disability Society.

Bonnie Brayton, CEO of DAWN Canada, said that 30 per cent of women in Canada live with a disability, meaning they are also disproportionately affected by inadequate care.

“Women and gender-diverse people with disabilities experience the highest rates of gender-based violence and poverty,” she said.

“We want access to housing, to healthcare, and to be free of violence, and instead, we are accessing MAiD at the highest rates,” Brayton said. “This law is a betrayal of our most fundamental rights.”