A woman who has struggled with mental illness for most of her life is disappointed to learn that mental illness will be part of the eligibility criteria for Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) come March of 2023.

The federal government has decided to lift the exemption meaning that someone with depression or a personality disorder will soon be eligible for medically-assisted suicide.

Kristi Allen told VOCM Open Line with Paddy Daly that now that the exclusions are being lifted she and others are left with no options other than to accept it, overhaul the system or extend the exclusion and work on increasing access to mental health care.

She says as someone who has tried “very hard” to work on her mental health, she knows that proper mental health care is not completely accessible for those who need it.

She’s worried about people who are not as privileged and who aren’t able to pay privately for the care they need.

Allen is encouraging people to write their MP to express their opposition to the change, but also their MHA, because the province is the one delivering mental health care. She’s asking Health Minister Tom Osborne whether the province has adequate mental health care to justify people being able to apply for MAID if their only illness is mental illness?