{"id":68034,"date":"2026-04-28T04:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-28T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canada.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/28\/toronto-woman-who-wants-to-die-says-federal-maid-committee-isnt-listening\/"},"modified":"2026-04-28T07:40:20","modified_gmt":"2026-04-28T11:40:20","slug":"toronto-woman-who-wants-to-die-says-federal-maid-committee-isnt-listening","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canada.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/28\/toronto-woman-who-wants-to-die-says-federal-maid-committee-isnt-listening\/","title":{"rendered":"Toronto woman who wants to die says federal MAID committee isn’t listening"},"content":{"rendered":"

Toronto woman who wants to die says federal MAID committee isn’t listening<\/a>
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https:\/\/www.cbc.ca\/news\/health\/medical-assistance-in-dying-mental-illness-9.7176814<\/a>
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Publish Date: 2026-04-28 04:00:00<\/a>
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Warning: This story references suicide.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Claire Elyse Brosseau has been waiting years for the Canadian government to let her die.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The 49-year-old has struggled for decades with a laundry list of mental diagnoses, including Bipolar 1 disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and disordered eating. All of this has made her life unbearable, she says.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI wake up in the morning and the minute I open my eyes, I feel just a sense of \u2026 dread and panic,\u201d she said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s why the Toronto woman wants to end her life, but under current Canadian legislation she\u2019s not eligible for medical assistance in dying (MAID) because she only suffers from mental illnesses. Next year, that\u2019s supposed to change \u2014 though the federal government has already delayed twice.<\/p>\n

The Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying (AMAD) is currently working to advise the government on the eligibility of people like Brosseau. But Brosseau and some experts say AMAD is not adhering to its mandate, which is to undertake a \u201ccomprehensive review\u201d of the topic. Some experts in favour of expanding MAID eligibility also say bias in the committee might lead to unfair recommendations.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Most MAID deaths in Canada due to cancer\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Since assisted dying became legal across Canada in 2016, more than 76,000 people have used it, according to a Health Canada report \u2014 the vast majority owing to cancer.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Initially, the legislation\u00a0said that a person’s natural death had to be “reasonably foreseeable.” Following a ruling by the Superior Court of Quebec in 2019, which found that criterion unconstitutional, the Canadian government approved new legislation in 2021, which is in place today and includes the following two tracks:<\/p>\n