Madam Speaker, first, we are pleased to see the reintroduction of Bill C-7 as part of the effort to end unnecessary suffering for those who are facing the end of life. I had a note from Jule Briese. She cited that her husband, Wayne, who is challenged with Alzheimer's, currently meets the criteria for medical assistance in dying as long as his window of capacity for informed consent does not narrow, preventing this. He has ongoing appointments at three-month intervals with his geriatric psychiatrist to assess his capacity for consent. She cites that this is extremely stressful, and could result in having to make this choice sooner rather than later. Legalizing advance requests for those with dementia to make the choice for MAID compassionately supports the individual's right to end-of-life choice guaranteed by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Could the parliamentary secretary speak to Julie and Wayne, and talk about how this legislation is going to help them? We certainly do not want him to have to choose to end his life prematurely, and this is a directive he would like to have fixed in the bill.