‘Be afraid of Bill C-14,’ says Kay Carter’s family
Posted June 6, 2016 10:21 am.
Last Updated June 6, 2016 4:58 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – A family that’s led the push for a law says it feels betrayed, with the Supreme Court’s assisted dying rule coming into play without legislation passed in Ottawa by the deadline.
The daughter of Kay Carter, who suffered from an excruciating but non-terminal condition for years says new federal legislation for medically assisted death would be no help to her.
The family helped spearhead the fight that ended with the Supreme Court of Canada approving assisted death for consenting adults with severe medical conditions who are enduring terrible suffering.
But Carter’s daughter, Lee, says her mother would not be eligible under Bill C-14, which is currently before the Senate.
“Today, we’re celebrating that Canadian law now allows Canadians to have a dignified and a peaceful death. However, I feel betrayed. The Liberal government has crafted Bill C-14 legislation to be so restrictive, my own mother would be turned away.”
“People who suffer from Huntington’s disease, MS, or even spinal stinosis — my mother’s condition — would all be denied because they are not terminal. Where did the Liberal government go so terribly wrong? They have not listened to Canadian voices, to their own joint committee, and even their own members of Parliament who have serious concerns about this bill.”
Kay Carter died in 2010 in Switzerland, where assisted death is legal.
“Be afraid of Bill C-14, Canada,” says her son, Price Carter.
“In its current form, it’s legislation that discriminates on age, mental status, and level of health. If you ever find yourself spiralling towards a hideous but non-terminal condition, know that Bill C-14 will ensure you are kept alive to lengthen your suffering until you die naturally. Know too that any directives you preemptively make to end your life — should your mental state deteriorate — will be ignored, forcing you and your family to endure pointless suffering trapped in a deteriorating brain.”
He says Bill C-14 will force young people to endure horrific diseases or painful treatments to keep them alive. “Old enough to understand the hopelessness of their diagnosis and the horror they face, but not old enough to qualify for compassionate death?”
“As it’s currently written, Bill C-14 does all this. It’s not a first good step. It’s a major stumble.”
Price Carter is asking those in good health to “consider the fate of those less fortunate and perhaps one day, your own.”
“To those suffering underage non-terminal Canadians needing end-of-life options, if the current Bill C-14 is made law, I am truly sorry — Canada will have let you down.”
The BC Civil Liberties Association argues the bill, as it is written, is clearly unconstitutional.
BC Civil Liberties Association lawyers fighting for amendments to C-14 worry the uncertainty surrounding the rules for who can seek a doctor-assisted death could cause some people to face a difficult decision.
The ruling from the Supreme Court of Canada is the law until the federal government brings in something else. Grace Pastine with the BC Civil Liberties Association says people suffering may rush ahead before a federal law makes it illegal to have an assisted death. “What a critically ill person would have to ask themselves is should I try to seek assistance in dying now possibly before I’m ready to go while life still has meaning for me or should I wait and possibly be condemned to die a cruel death? That is a very unfortunate consequence of Bill C-14.”
But, the BCCLA doesn’t want lawmakers to hurry to pass Bill C-14 as it is, saying it would permanently cut out people without terminal illnesses.
