Medical Assistance in Dying committee  The first point is that I don't think MAID should be mentioned or offered to people when they are in acute care or even in rehabilitation after sustaining a spinal cord injury. Do I think people, down the road after seven years or eight years...? It is, again, a situation where it's important to look at all the variables.

Medical Assistance in Dying committee  I don't know that there's been any growth in that area that I'm aware of. You'd have to ask others who have more information and expertise.

Medical Assistance in Dying committee  The best safeguard is to work with the family and with the person who has the new injury and connect them with families and individuals who have gone through this initial phase of terrifying shock in many ways, and have gotten through that and have rebuilt amazing lives. Many lives are, as I said before, stronger and more satisfying than they were before the injury.

Medical Assistance in Dying committee  There are multiple calls that come in to our organizations across the country. I'm happy to speak about two of them. I had a phone call several weeks ago from a colleague who was representing a woman who is 17 years old. She was in intensive care and had a high-level spinal cord injury.

Medical Assistance in Dying committee  Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm Bill Adair. I work for Spinal Cord Injury Canada, which was founded in 1945 by World War II veterans who came back home to a country that expected very little from them and who dismissed the idea that they would be shut away in convalescent homes. Our founders fought in battles overseas and then back home to provide the proof that their lives are worth living.

Human Resources committee  Yes, I would agree with that fully.

Human Resources committee  Thank you for that question and that point. The disability community, broadly speaking, applauds the new policy that the Province of British Columbia has released in the last two days regarding this issue. I completely agree that we should be calling on the Government of Canada to encourage and support all provinces and territories to adopt a similar policy to ensure that people are not left alone in a hospital setting, and also so that they can fully participate in decisions regarding their own medical care.

Human Resources committee  I think there are lessons in COVID-19 for people to learn in all areas of life. Certainly people living with disabilities face a great deal of isolation, more than the general population. It shows their resilience and their capacity and their ability to be creative and to find ways to find meaning in life even though they are often living in isolation.

Human Resources committee  Thank you. I'm Bill Adair, executive director of Spinal Cord Injury Canada. I'm pleased to be speaking with you today about the Government of Canada's response to COVID-19. I'm especially glad to be doing so as our organization celebrates its 75th anniversary. Spinal Cord Injury Canada was founded by World War II veterans with spinal cord injuries, who were determined to return to Canada and make it a more inclusive and accessible place to live.