With respect to Mr. Bittle's comments, I don't believe the issues are separate. Palliative care is an essential component of end-of-life decision-making. Indeed, many have said—and I believe the president of the CMA herself has said—that one cannot truly consent to medical assistance in dying unless they have all options made available to them, including palliative care.
We know that in Canada today, somewhere in the neighbourhood of only 15% to 30% of Canadians have access to palliative care. It is absolutely essential that we have a pan-Canadian national strategy with dedicated funding to ensure not only that Canadians have the option of palliative care, but that they have access to palliative care. I think it would be appropriate to include a review with respect to palliative care.