Fact: The medications used in MAID are the same types of medications used in other medical and surgical situations. Given in a specific sequence at appropriate dosages, they work quickly to relax the person, induce a coma, then stop their breathing. Death usually occurs within minutes. MAID does not cause fluid to build up in the lungs or any physical process similar to drowning.

Learn what to expect at a MAID death. 

Fact: Canada’s MAID laws are governed by strict eligibility criteria. Decisions are based on individual medical circumstances, enduring suffering, and personal autonomy, not economic considerations. There is no evidence that MAID is used systematically or strategically to reduce health care costs. MAID assessors and providers are bound by ethical and legal safeguards designed to protect vulnerable people.

Learn more about the safeguards and oversight built into the MAID process.

Fact: MAID eligibility is determined by legally defined criteria, including the person’s medical condition, experience of suffering, decision-making capacity, and whether their request is voluntary and free from pressure. Being poor or from a marginalized community does not qualify or disqualify someone. 

Disability may be part of a person’s medical condition, but eligibility always depends on meeting the full set of criteria, after which the safeguards are applied. Federal reporting requirements provide oversight to ensure these criteria are applied.

The Government of Canada publishes an annual report on MAID that allows the Canadian public to understand how MAID is used across the country. Reports for 2023 and 2024 showed data suggesting that people who live in low-income neighbourhoods were not overly represented in the group of people who received MAID during those years.

Learn more about how safeguards protect vulnerable people. 

Fact: Federal law does not prohibit health care providers from starting a discussion with or responding to questions about MAID from a patient, though provincial and territorial laws may have their own policies on whether and how health care providers can speak about MAID. Discussing MAID is not the same as recommending or directing someone toward it. Eligibility requires a voluntary, informed request from the patient.

In some situations – particularly in end-of-life care planning – nurse practitioners and physicians may raise MAID as a care option alongside palliative care and other treatment options.

Health care providers, including those who assess or provide MAID, are regulated by professional colleges in their province or territory. They must follow established laws, policies, and standards of practice, and are accountable for their conduct. Learn more about safeguards and accountability in the MAID process.

More information about the standards of practice for MAID assessors and providers is available on the Canadian Association of MAiD Assessors and Providers website.