Albertans support MAID, but divided on access to service: poll

A ThinkHQ poll suggests that Albertans are in support of medical assistance in dying, but there are concerns about the UCP government's attempts to limit access to patients. (File)

A majority of Albertans support medical assistance in dying (MAID), but are divided on how the province plans to restrict access under proposed legislation, according to new polling and interviews with stakeholders.

A ThinkHQ survey released Wednesday found 71 per cent of Albertans approve of Canada’s current MAID provisions, with 42 per cent strongly supporting them and 29 per cent somewhat supporting them.

Twenty-three per cent disapprove and six per cent are unsure.

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The poll comes as Alberta’s United Conservative government moves forward with Bill 18, the Safeguards for Last Resort Termination of Life Act, which would limit access to MAID to adults whose natural death is likely within 12 months.

In an interview, ThinkHQ president Marc Henry said support is tied to the existing federal framework.

“And with those criteria, 71 per cent of Albertans support MAID as outlined in the federal framework. 42 per cent strongly support it,” said Henry.

“That’s in contrast to fewer than one-in-four (23 per cent) who do not support that practice.”

Albertans against Bill 18’s changes

Under federal rules, eligibility requires a competent adult who clearly consents and has a grievous and irremediable medical condition causing intolerable suffering.

Albertans appear far more divided on the province’s proposed changes.

The ThinkHQ survey found 46 per cent approve of Bill 18 and 46 per cent disapprove, with eight per cent unsure.

A plurality, 46 per cent, said the bill’s conditions are too narrow, compared with 17 per cent who said they are too broad and 29 per cent who said they are about right.

Henry said the proposed restriction to those expected to die within a year is a key point of contention.

“The notable piece being that it’s limited to people who have a condition that would see their natural death within 12 months. So we asked Albertans what they think of Bill 18, and it’s split right down the middle - 46 per cent approve, 46 per cent disapprove,” he said.

The poll also found many Albertans want the option available to them personally.

Thirty-eight per cent said they would consider MAID if suffering from a grievous and irremediable condition, while another 35 per cent said they may or may not consider it but would want the option.

Eighteen per cent said they would never consider it and eight per cent were unsure.

Henry said that sentiment aligns with broader support for maintaining access.

“You have 38 per cent of Albertans who said outright, ‘Yes, I would consider it another 35 per cent saying that,” said Henry.

“I don’t know whether I would or not, but I sure would like to have the option available to me.”

Other concerns of MAID legislation

Additional elements of the proposed legislation also drew concern in the polling, including provisions allowing physicians and facilities to opt out of participating in MAID without referring patients elsewhere.

“They (polled Albertans) don’t like that idea,” Henry said.

‘Sixty-one per cent are opposed to it.

“You do get a sizable majority of people who are opposed to that particular little piece of Bill 18, I think if they (the provincial government) are going to have a problem with it, that’s going to be it. That’s going to be the that’s going to be the issue.”

The province introduced the bill on April 15, saying it would restrict MAID to those nearing natural death and prohibit access based on mental illness alone.

Premier Danielle Smith said that day, “We believe MAID must be a compassionate option reserved only for those who will not recover from terminal illness.”

That same day, Alberta Justice Minister Mickey Amery said, “We think that this bill finds the appropriate balance.”

Critics, including health law experts, have raised concerns the changes could face constitutional challenges and limit access for people with serious but non-terminal conditions.

In the CTV News story published April 15, University of Calgary health law professor Lorian Hardcastle questioned how the government would justify allowing one ALS patient access while denying another suffering at the same level.

Advocacy groups representing patients with neurological diseases also warned the proposed rules could exclude people experiencing significant suffering.

In a joint statement, the Parkinson Association of Alberta and the ALS Society of Alberta said they are concerned about limiting eligibility based on predictability of death rather than severity of suffering, restricting advance care planning options, limiting access to information needed for informed health decisions and requiring a family member to be present at the time of MAID provision.

The groups said they support safeguards for vulnerable people, but also believe policies must reflect the realities of degenerative neurological disease and avoid unintentionally excluding people from deeply personal health decisions.

‘Selective framing’: Edmonton doctor

An Edmonton family physician also raised concerns about how MAID data is being presented publicly, saying federal figures show growth in MAID cases is slowing and do not show widespread lack of access to care or supports.

In an email, Dr. Kathryn Andrusky wrote that 16,499 Canadians received MAID in 2024, accounting for about 5.1 per cent of deaths, while the growth rate declined significantly from 36.8 per cent between 2019 and 2020 to 6.9 per cent between 2023 and 2024.

She said that while MAID has been described as the fifth leading cause of death, that framing can be misleading because it represents a mechanism of death in the context of serious illness rather than a distinct disease category.

Andrusky also wrote that available data do not support claims MAID is primarily driven by social isolation, poverty or lack of access to care, noting most recipients received palliative care and that only small percentages reported difficulty accessing supports.

“The issue is that the overall narrative relies on selective framing rather than a balanced reading of the available data,” she wrote.

She added, “Hope doesn’t come from limiting options – it comes from ensuring people have real choices, supported by care.”

Henry said the issue remains deeply personal and politically sensitive.

“I mean, nobody likes to think about their own mortality. But you know, certainly in in Alberta, there is an overall wide level of support for, you know, having the option available to people who are suffering,” he said.

The ThinkHQ poll was conducted online between April 9 and 13 from a sample size of 1,120 adult Albertans.

The margin of error for a comparable probability-based random sample of this size is +/- 2.9 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.