One in 20 people who die in Canada are being euthanised, according to new statistics.
Voluntary euthanasia led to the deaths of over 15,000 people in Canada last year.
The average age of euthanasia subjects was 77.
Around 95% had “reasonably foreseeable” deaths in their near future due to conditions like cancer.
Nearly 40% of the deaths came in Quebec, which accounts for around 20% of the Canadian population.
The Canadian government legalised euthanasia in 2016, joining the ranks of Australia, New Zealand, Spain, Austria and the Netherlands.
There has been significant controversy over the introduction and expansion of the “medically assisted dying” or MAiD program; although polling suggests that there is widespread support for the program.
In October, an expert committee reported that patients were asking to be killed for social reasons such as isolation and homelessness, rather than having a terminal illness or unmanageable pain.
Data suggest that those asking to be killed in Ontario are far more likely to require disability support and be socially isolated.
Trudo Lemmens, a professor at the University of Toronto, said medical professional bodies and judicial authorities in Canada appeared to be “unwilling to curtail practices that appear ethically problematic.”
“Either the law is too broad, or the professional guidance not precise enough,” Lemmens said. “Or it is simply not seen as a priority to protect some of our most vulnerable citizens.”
The British House of Commons recently passed a euthanasia bill. The bill still needs to pass the Lords in order to become law.
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