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Articles on Right to die

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The planned expansion of Canada’s medical assistance in dying (MAID) law to include people with mental illnesses whose death is not imminent has been delayed, but not cancelled. (Shutterstock)

Canada delays expanding medical assistance in dying to include mental illness, but it’s still a policy built on quicksand

Canada’s planned expansion of MAID to mental illness is based on ignorance — if not outright disregard — of fundamental suicide prevention principles.
Right to die activist Sean Davison (left) speaks to the press after three years of house arrest. Brenton Geach/Gallo Images via Getty Images

The right to die: unpacking an ethical dilemma in South Africa

People make decisions throughout their lives about their health. But when they are terminally ill they are not allowed to decide when they want to die.
On May 16, 2019, Madeleine Munier Apaire (shown here in June 2014), lawyer for Vincent Lambert’s nephew, considered that all remedies were “exhausted”. Eric Feferberg/AFP

Vincent Lambert: what are the legal and ethical issues?

The debate over Mr. Vincent Lambert’s decision to discontinue his care overshadowed equally important judicial and ethical issues. A look back at a complex situation that will set a precedent.
Australian scientist David Goodall photographed in Basel, Switzerland, on May 8, 2018 ended his life in with assisted suicide. (AP Photo/Jamey Keaten)

‘Suicide tourism’ and understanding the Swiss model of the right to die

Recent stories in the media highlight the idea of suicide tourism to Switzerland. But what does that mean? How is the Swiss view of assisted dying different from the Canadian one?
Historical evidence of suicide rates varying with the philosophy of the times urges caution about adopting an unqualified libertarian stance that privileges autonomy above all else. Arallyn!/Flickr

Do people really have the right to a rational suicide?

Seven Australians will die today as a result of suicide, the leading cause of death in young Australian men. So the media interest surrounding one in particular, that of 45-year-old Nigel Brayley’s suicide…

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