> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.thecanadareport.ca/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Ottawa Scraps Plan to Expand MAID to Mental Illness Alone - URL: https://www.thecanadareport.ca/maid-mental-illness-exclusion/ - Published: 2026-10-08T15:44:28.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-08T20:37:19.000Z - Description: MAID for mental illness will remain excluded indefinitely as Ottawa reverses its planned 2027 expansion after committee concerns. - Author: Steve Cogbill - Tags: Daily News, Ontario | Sourced from 7 independent sources · 1 point in dispute | | ------------------------------------------------------- | liveaction.org, care.org.uk, readthepeak.com, aol.com, insurancebusinessmag.com, theglobeandmail.com, and torontolife.com Sources agree on most key facts but differ on 1 point. 9 key facts · 8 corroborated · 1 disputed Where sources differ When the temporary delay on including mental illness as a sole basis for MAID eligibility was set to expire (March 2027 vs March tied to a 2024 timeline). care.org.uk: The law was due to be further extended to those with mental health conditions by 2024, but the government delayed implementation; the exclusion was due to expire in March, when mentally ill patients would be eligible. readthepeak.com: The government would prohibit MAID for people whose sole underlying condition is mental illness, a population slated to become eligible beginning in March 2027. insurancebusinessmag.com: The federal government will indefinitely suspend its plan to extend MAID to people whose only underlying condition is a mental illness; the expansion had been due to take effect in March 2027. Allegations described here are not proven in court unless stated. Canada has decided not to expand medical assistance in dying to people whose sole underlying medical condition is mental illness, reversing course on a change that had been scheduled to take effect in March 2027. Justice Minister Sean Fraser says the federal government will table legislation to indefinitely maintain the exclusion and amend the Criminal Code. “Canada has made a decision not to move forward with the expansion,” Fraser said, adding that while there is “not a perfect consensus on this issue,” the government believes its approach is correct. ## Government promises indefinite exclusion The proposed legislation would bar MAID eligibility where mental illness is the sole underlying medical condition. Fraser’s announcement follows years of debate over whether Canada’s MAID framework should include people whose only qualifying condition is psychiatric. The government’s decision is a significant policy turn because the expansion had been scheduled to begin in March 2027\. It also puts Ottawa’s next move squarely before Parliament: Fraser has said the government will introduce legislation to make the exclusion indefinite. ## Committee concerns shaped decision A House-Senate committee and advisory panel recommended in June that people whose sole underlying condition is mental illness be indefinitely excluded from MAID eligibility. Its report raised concerns about inadequate mental-health supports and the possibility that people could seek MAID when they could not access the care they needed. The panel also pointed to a continuing debate over whether mental illness can ever be considered incurable. Those questions have remained central to the discussion. Fraser cited concerns about access to mental-health services in explaining the government’s position. ## MPs reject Conservative bill The government’s announcement came on the same day MPs voted against Conservative Bill C-218, which would have prohibited expanding MAID to Canadians on the basis of mental illness alone. The vote against C-218 leaves the government’s own forthcoming legislation as the proposed route to an indefinite exclusion. Both developments reflect the political sensitivity of a policy area that has repeatedly been delayed, reviewed and contested. ## Advance requests also proposed Fraser’s planned legislation would also make a separate change to the MAID system: it would allow patients to make advance requests when they are expected to lose the capacity to consent in the future. The Criminal Code currently requires changes before medical practitioners can act on an advance request for MAID. Fraser said the government intends to amend the law accordingly, potentially prompting further decisions at the provincial level about whether and how to offer such services. ## Court challenge remains pending The decision does not end the legal debate. Toronto Life has reported that at least one court challenge to the exclusion is pending in Ontario. Canada’s MAID framework has already undergone major change. In 2021, the country expanded eligibility by removing the requirement that a person’s death be “reasonably foreseeable.” The new federal proposal would draw a firm line around mental illness as a sole condition while opening discussion of advance requests for people who may later lose the ability to consent. **Reader-funded. No ads. No paywall.** The Canada Report is independent, reader-funded Canadian news — no advertisers, nothing behind a paywall, kept free for everyone. If you value it, you can help keep it that way. [Support The Canada Report →](https://www.thecanadareport.ca/support/) --- [*Source 1*](https://www.liveaction.org/news/canada-maid-expansion-mental-illness-people-dementia?queryID=ba056a778893df9f095f8d5eeb6ba387&ref=thecanadareport.ca) *|* [*Source 2*](https://care.org.uk/news/2026/10/canada-stops-assisted-suicide-for-mental-health-conditions?ref=thecanadareport.ca) *|* [*Source 3*](https://www.readthepeak.com/p/ottawa-draws-a-line-at-maid-for-mental-illness?ref=thecanadareport.ca) *|* [*Source 4*](https://www.aol.com/articles/mentally-ill-excluded-euthanasia-canada-065138000.html?ref=thecanadareport.ca) *|* [*Source 5*](https://www.insurancebusinessmag.com/ca/news/breaking-news/ottawa-shelves-maid-expansion-leaving-life-insurers-position-on-mental-illness-untested-592748.aspx?ref=thecanadareport.ca) *|* [*Source 6*](https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-politics-insider-ottawa-to-ban-maid-solely-for-mental-illness/?ref=thecanadareport.ca) *|* [*Source 7*](https://torontolife.com/city/canada-wont-expand-maid-access-to-include-mental-illness/?ref=thecanadareport.ca) ## Sign up for The Canada Report Your modern digest of Canadian news. 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