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Montreal, March 27, 2025 – Yesterday, the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities published its concluding observations following its review of the report submitted by Canada under the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, on March 10 and 11.

In its 19-page report, the Committee shares positive and negative aspects concerning respect of the Convention. It expresses “extreme concern” only once, when discussing Track 2 Medical Assistance in Dying, which is intended for people whose natural death is not reasonably foreseeable.

The Committee writes: “The federal government did not challenge the Quebec Truchon decision which fundamentally changes the whole premise of medical assistance in dying when natural death is reasonably foreseeable to a new program that establishes medically assisted dying for persons with disabilities based on negative, ableist perceptions of the quality and value of the life of persons with disabilities, including that ‘suffering’ is intrinsic to disability rather than the fact that inequality and discrimination cause and compound ‘suffering’ for persons with disabilities”.

Its recommendations are as follows (excerpts):

– Repeal Track 2 Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD), including the 2027 commencement of Track 2 MAiD for persons whose “sole underlying medical condition is a mental illness”;

– Not support proposals for the expansion of MAiD to include “mature minors” and advance requests;

– Significantly invest and implement comprehensive measures, at federal, provincial, and territorial levels to ensure the systemic failures in relation to the social determinants of health and well-being are addressed,

– Strengthen distinctions-based, community-led consultation processes with Indigenous Peoples,

– Establish and resource a federal independent oversight mechanism to monitor, regulate and handle complaints in relation to MAiD.