BC organization challenges assisted dying law

The BC Civil Liberties Association (BCCLA) is challenging the new right to die law as it says it discriminates against Canadians.

Julia Lamb, a 25-year-old woman from Chilliwack who has Spinal Muscular Atrophy has launched the legal challenge to the new legislation. The current law does not permit assistance in dying for those who are suffering with no immediate end in sight.

According to BCCLA, Canadians with diseases like spinal muscular atrophy, multiple sclerosis, spinal stenosis, locked in syndrome, traumatic spinal injury, Parkinson’s disease and Huntingdon’s disease are not eligible for medical assistance in dying under the new law.

Lamb’s disease causes weakness and wasting of the voluntary muscles and she relies on care aides for assistance with all her daily living activities. At any point, Lamb's disease could progress to the point that she is subjected to constant severe pain in which she would lose the ability to use her hands or arms, would require a ventilator for assistance with breathing, and would no longer be able to speak, write or use her computer, and requires constant care, thereby losing her independence. Lamb could find herself trapped in a state of intolerable physical and mental suffering for years and even decades.

“This is about agency, choice and compassion. This is about the most fundamental values that define being Canadian,” said Lamb in a statement. “Respecting each other's choices, even when those choices are different from one another. What I am asking for is essential to my wellbeing and autonomy. I am forced to suffer with this disease without a choice, a disease that inherently limits my opportunities for choice. If my suffering becomes intolerable, I would like to be able to make a final choice about how much suffering to endure.”

The BCCLA calls the current legislation unconstitutional and said it deliberately excludes a class of Canadians. BCCLA stated that people will find ways to end lives that have become unbearable, even if that means choosing a violent, risky death and that is a cruel choice.

Under current laws, it is legal to commit suicide. Patients also have a right to accept or refuse medical treatment – for example, a patient can refuse kidney dialysis, or mechanical ventilation, even if that choice leads to death.