Good afternoon, and thank you for providing the opportunity to speak with you about Bill C-14, legislation that will have a profound impact on Canadian society for years to come.
I appear today on behalf of the Coalition for HealthCARE and Conscience. Joining me is my colleague Larry Worthen, the executive director of the Christian Medical and Dental Society of Canada, which is a member of our coalition. We represent more than 5,000 physicians across Canada and more than 110 health care facilities and almost 18,000 care beds and 60,000 staff.
As we have previously stated, because of our mission and our moral convictions, we cannot support or condone assisted suicide or euthanasia. We understand, however, that the Supreme Court of Canada has directed the federal government to pass legislation on euthanasia/assisted suicide by June 6 and that Bill C-14 comes as a result of that decision.
Today we will address the need for amendments to Bill C-14 to protect conscience rights for physicians and health care facilities. Our members are committed to caring for their patients at every stage of life. We know what it is to journey with those who are facing great suffering in mind and body. We are committed to serving those who suffer with a compassionate love that is rooted in faith and expressed through the best medical care available.
What our members cannot do is perform or participate in what is being referred to as medically assisted death. To be clear, by participation I also mean playing a role in causing death by arranging for the procedure to be carried out by someone else through a referral.
We acknowledge that the draft legislation tabled on April 14 set aside, at least for the moment, some of the most disturbing recommendations from the parliamentary joint committee. We remain concerned, however, that the bill does not protect the conscience rights of health care workers and facilities with moral objections to euthanasia and assisted suicide.
We see no reference to conscience rights in Bill C-14. The preamble to the legislation notes that the government respects “the personal convictions of health care providers.” While that respect is appreciated, it does not carry the same legal weight as legislative protection. No foreign jurisdiction in the world that has legalized euthanasia/assisted suicide forces health care workers, hospitals, nursing homes, or hospices to act against their conscience or mission and values.
It appears that the federal government is leaving this issue to the provinces and territories for consideration, but if the federal government enacts a law that establishes euthanasia/assisted suicide across Canada, it needs to provide robust protection of conscience rights across Canada.
It is essential that the government ensure that effective conscience protection is given to health care providers, both institutions and individuals. It is simply not right or just to say to an individual, “You do not have to do what is against your conscience, but you must make sure it happens.” It is equally unjust to require a health care facility to repudiate its institutional conscience or mission. We would note that no health care facility in Canada makes every procedure available to its patients.
We will continue to journey lovingly with our patients every day. We ask that you protect all health care workers and the institutions that are successors to the pioneers of health care in our country to ensure that they may continue their mission of care and healing.
Larry.