While Canada’s federal government has yet to release nationwide statistics on the number of citizens who have sought and received euthanasia under the Medical Aid in Dying program (MAiD), a recent independent analysis of data from individual provinces suggests the numbers are up across the board.
The analysis was conducted by Alex Schadenberg, Executive Director of Euthanasia Prevention Coalition, a Canadian action group that works to ensure the preservation and enforcement of the legal prohibitions and ethical guidelines of “mercy killing,” as well as raising awareness of alternative treatments. He began his report by examining the data from British Columbia (BC) in 2023, finding 2,767 reported assisted deaths, which is up by 10% from 2,515 in 2022.
British Columbia
Schadenberg was most concerned with the category of “other conditions,” as Canada’s MAiD services are supposed to be reserved for those with terminal illnesses, meaning there is no chance that the patient will respond to further treatment and will most likely die as a result of the illness. In BC’s data, there were a number of conditions encompassed under the blanket category of “other conditions,” such as: Autoimmune Condition 2.4%, Chronic Pain 24.8%, Diabetes 9.8%, Frailty 60.5%, Other Comorbidities 52.1%.
He pointed out that diabetes, frailty, chronic pain, and autoimmune conditions, while often chronic, are not terminal conditions. He also took exception to the “Other Comorbidities” category, which represents unnamed conditions. It is unclear whether these are terminal conditions either.
Schadenberg also noted that the report was devoid of any further examination as to why the patients sought their own death, only listing the condition of the patient.
Other provinces
Schadenberg then gathered the most recent reports from the provinces that have published their MAiD numbers from 2023. Each one showed an increase in euthanasia deaths when compared to the previous year. Québec, for instance, saw a 17% increase, rising to 5,686 reported deaths, which represents 7.3% of all deaths in the province. The report notes that this is the highest euthanasia death rate in the world.
In Ontario, 2023 saw 4,641 reported euthanasia deaths, up 18% from the 3,934 reported euthanasia deaths in 2022. The Province of Alberta also reported an 18% increase in MAiD deaths, rising from 836 in 2022 to 977 in 2023. Manitoba, with only about a quarter of the population of Ontario, reported a 6% increase last year, from 223 to 236.
The largest increase in MAiD deaths by percentage was seen in Nova Scotia, which was up by more than 25%, from 272 in 2022 to 342 in 2023. It should be noted that Nova Scotia has the smallest population of any province or territory on the list.
Schadenberg concluded with a round up, finding a total of 14,413 assisted deaths in 2023 among all the previously listed provinces. In total, these six provinces alone saw a 15.4% increase in these “mercy killings.” The data that he examined led him to predict that the total number of MAiD deaths in all of Canada will be numbered by the upcoming official government report at around 15,280 in 2023.
