TORONTO --
The agony that Cheryl Romaire lives with is so debilitating that some days, she feels her body “might actually just physically die from the pain.” Marie -- not her real name -- also lives with multiple disabilities, pain, nerve degeneration, neuropathy, and has trouble walking and standing.
Both are fighting a life-and-death battle over a bill that will change Canada’s assisted dying laws -- but from opposing positions.
Ottawa was granted a third extension to address the changes in Bill C-7, with the new deadline set for Feb. 26, 2021 by which time the federal government will be required to adjust their laws to match those in Quebec: the proposed changes will make it easier for people with untreatable health problems to apply for medical assistance in dying (MAiD), even if their conditions are not terminal. But lawmakers are struggling to get the details of the bill right.