Canadian doctors' group suggests euthanasia for disabled infants

Doctors in Canada have said euthanasia for newborns born with disabilities "may be an appropriate treatment," as concerns mount over the expansion of the country's euthanasia and assisted suicide program.

Dr. Louis Roy, speaking for the Quebec College of Physicians before the Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying, recommended euthanasia be introduced for babies with severe deformations and grave medical syndromes. The CMQ reiterated the position this week, saying that under such circumstances the deliberate ending of a child's life constitutes "care."

The proposal follows a rapid widening of Canada's regime. Parliament repealed the requirement that natural death be "reasonably foreseeable" in 2021, five years after legalization. Legislation introduced in 2024 would extend eligibility to mental illness alone by March 2027, and a parliamentary committee recommended in 2023 that euthanasia be made available to children.

Trudo Lemmens, a University of Toronto law professor who initially backed Canada's law, said the experiment shows a significant number of physicians normalize the practice once it is legalized, comparing it to putting fuel on a fire.

In 2023, 15,343 Canadians died by euthanasia or assisted suicide, 4.7% of all deaths.