A Canadian judge ruled this week that a 27-year-old woman can access medical assistance in dying (MAID), even as her father pleads that she does not have any qualifying medical conditions.
In order to protect the family's privacy, the woman is being identified as M.V., while her father is identified as W.V.
"M.V.'s dignity and right to self-determination outweighs the important matters raised by W.V. and the harm that he will suffer in losing M.V.," wrote Calgary Justice Colin Feasby, in the ruling.
"Though I find that W.V. has raised serious issues, I conclude that M.V. 's autonomy and dignity interests outweigh competing considerations."
M.V.'s assisted suicide was initially scheduled for Febraury 1, but her father was able to successfully file an injunction the day before. He also submitted documentation indicating that in 2021 his daughter underwent a neurology scan and her results came back as "normal."
W.V. argues that M.V. was "unduly influenced by a third party," CBC reported.
"M.V. suffers from autism and possibly other undiagnosed maladies that do not satisfy the eligibility criteria for MAID," the dad argued in his lawsuit. The 27-year-old lives with her parents and has never held a long-term, steady job, according to the Globe and Mail.
When Canada first legalized assisted suicide, it was limited to people who were suffering from terminal illnesses. The law was amended in 2021 to include those with non-terminal but severe and permanent medical conditions. Those suffering exclusively from mental illnesses are still excluded from MAID eligibility.
The expanded version of the law has been condemned by the United Nations, Pope Francis and disability rights advocates - all of whom argue that it places an undue burden on disabled Canadians.
In Feasby's ruling, he said that W.V. worries that his child "is vulnerable and is not competent to make the decision to take her own life."
"He says that she is generally healthy and believes that her physical symptoms, to the extent that she has any, result from undiagnosed psychological conditions."
M.V. did not outline what her qualifying conditions were in her court filings. When she first sought approval for the procedure, M.V. was denied and had to re-do the process. On her second attempt, the tie-breaking vote to approve the assisted suicide came from the same doctor who approved her during her first attempt, according to the Globe and Mail.
"What I know of your journey through the health-care system from the evidence in this case suggests that you have struggled to find a doctor who could diagnose your condition and offer appropriate treatment," Feasby wrote, addressing M.V. directly in the ruling.
"I do not know why you seek MAID. Your reasons remain your own because I have respected your autonomy and your privacy. My decision recognizes your right to choose medically assisted death; but it does not require you to choose death."
Feasby issued a 30-day stay of his decision which will allow the father to appeal the decision.
