French-Canadian academic discussion on medical assistance in dying

In 2014, the Quebec National Assembly passed the Act respecting end-of-life care, which allows medical aid in dying (MAiD) under certain conditions. Six years later, in 2021, the National Assembly created an ad hoc commission of parliamentarians to study two questions: the inclusion in the Act of advanced requests for MAiD for patients who may become incapable; and the opening of MAiD to people whose sole reason for seeking it is mental illness. In 2022 in France, the National Consultative Ethics Committee (CCNE) published Opinion 139 on ethical issues related to end-of-life situations. A French-Canadian conference was held on October 24 and 25, 2022, to address the ethical issues related to end-of-life situations based on the Canadian experience and the French prospective. Admission to MAiD is time-consuming and requires a strong relationship between caregivers and patients. MAiD primarily concerns people with refractory cancer (70%), featuring a short-term prognosis and an intolerable suffering. In terms of numbers, 93% of those who received MAID did so due to physical and psychological suffering, with only 7% having only psychological suffering and a very poor disease prognosis without yet experiencing major symptoms, and less than 1% having only physical suffering. Half of MAiD requests were granted within 10 days, and 29% within 10 to 30 days, which largely depends on the immediate prognosis of the disease and the level of suffering. Academic discussions about MAiD eligibility criteria and their potential application in France are reported in this article. It turned out that, due to the legal and cultural differences that exist between Canada and France, the answers provided in Canada may not be applicable in France.