EDMONTON – Alberta’s justice minister has been directed to introduce new legislation on Medical Assistance in Dying, or MAID, that would give the government greater control and oversight of the program.
A new mandate letter to Mickey Amery from Premier Danielle Smith says the legislation should introduce “appropriate safeguards” and prohibit mental illness from being a sole eligibility factor.
Mental illness has never been an approved sole eligibility factor for MAID, though Ottawa has considered permitting it.
The federal government had planned to do so in 2024, but the final decision has been delayed to 2027.
Amery’s letter doesn’t say what other safeguards the government is considering or what kind of oversight it wants to have over the program.
Alberta Health Services says more than 1,100 Albertans chose to have a medically assisted death last year.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 25, 2025.
