Assisted Life Before Assisted Death: Disability Discomfort Regarding MAID

This chapter considers the vulnerability of disabled persons within Canada’sCanada Medical Assistance in Dying regime. It briefly outlines the history of disabled persons opposition and the failure of both government and the media to respond to these concerns. It then examines some of the contextual and historical issues which underlay disabled persons concerns. The main part of the chapter considers three key factors which create this vulnerability and may lead to disabled persons seeking MAID due to preventable socio-economic factors: the threat of or current institutionalization; a lack of access to sufficient and acceptable disability supports; and, poverty. Each of these aspects of vulnerability are illustrated by a number of case examples. Finally, the chapter discusses the absence of any significant safeguards to protect disabled persons and the failure of current monitoring and reporting regimes to identify cases of MAID motivated by the factors noted above.