Should dementia patients be able to make advance requests for medical assistance in dying?

As the number of dementia patients in Canada continues to climb, so do calls to allow advance requests for medical assistance in dying (MAID).

Similar to the debate over expanding MAID to those suffering solely from mental illness, it's another sign that the Canadian government is far from finished wading through the complexities of the end-of-life procedure.

There's currently a petition before the House of Commons requesting a Criminal Code amendment to allow people facing a capacity-diminishing diagnosis to request MAID in advance.

It was sponsored by Yukon Liberal MP Brendan Hanley and has more than 16,000 signatures as of Tuesday morning.

«The advance request lets you say, 'I know I'm going to get there eventually, but I'm not there yet. But when I get there, that's what I want to happen,'» said Dying with Dignity Canada CEO Helen Long.

«I have seen many people in long-term [care] homes who are just waiting to die. It's God's parking lot,» said Jennifer Peyton, 70, of Woodstock, Ont., who, despite being in good health is concerned about her options down the road.

«I am terrified that I am going to end up like that,» said Peyton. «I'm healthy right now, but you don't know when it's going to hit.»

According to an Ipsos poll published last July, support for advance requests for MAID for individuals diagnosed with a grievous and irremediable condition remains high.

Dementia cases expected to skyrocket

The Alzheimer Society of Canada predicts that by 2030 the country could see a 51 per cent increase over 2020 in the number of new dementia cases per year.

An estimated 6.3 million people in Canada will develop, live with and/or ultimately die with dementia between 2020 and 2050.

«Canada is an aging population … and they're always